Broken Parts Can't Fix an Engine
by Koury Coving
Summary: The Host Club is used to serving guests seeking help. That is, after all, the point of the club in the first place. However, that task is made rather difficult when a girl - who is obviously in trouble - refuses any aid whatsoever. She acts as though everything is fine, and maybe it is, but Kyoya is not so sure. He can tell she is hiding something, and he intends to find out what.
1. An Alarming First-Time Visit

Broken Parts Can't Fix an Engine

Chapter One

An Alarming First-Time Visit

It was a day like any other day, really. Nothing exciting happened during school, and nothing particularly special was planned for the Host Club. Everyone seemed in a fairly decent mood despite the dense blanket of clouds covering the sun outside. School had just ended and the Host Club was about to begin in twenty minutes – the gang was in Music Room #3 waiting for the first of their guests to come in. As it turned out, their hosting day was about to start a little earlier than expected.

As Tamaki settled onto his throne and the others gathered – the twins and Honey still chattering away – the doors to the room were suddenly thrown open. Quick to get into character, everyone stopped their conversations and spoke in unison.

"Welcome," they said before they even saw who they were speaking to. The girl who entered looked surprised to see them there. Her amber eyes were stretched wide, and her breaths were coming out strained as though she had just run a mile. The group looked at her with astonishment, and Kyoya noted that she had never been to the Club before. He also hadn't seen her around campus. Tamaki was on his feet in an instant.

"Oh, my most beautiful lady, are you alright?" he asked with genuine concern.

The girl didn't respond – she just quickly shut the door behind her and pressed her ear against it. The whole club was stunned by this until they heard loud footsteps echoing down the halls, and shouts preceding them.

"Come on, she went this way!" someone called. The girl visibly held her breath and waited in stiff tension.

Tamaki stood next to the girl and leaned down so that he was more at her level. "My Lady, is someone chasing you?" he whispered in respect for her obvious alarm. The girl immediately slapped her hand onto Tamaki's mouth and held a finger up to her lips. Tamaki hesitated for a moment before he nodded and she released him.

The Club watched in confused silence as she turned back to the doors and peered through the small crack in between them. The suspense grew as the footsteps increased in volume until they were right outside. The girl slid silently away from the crack and pressed her back against the door; for the first time standing up straight. Tamaki also stood to his full height, which was about half a foot taller than the girl. Tamaki, as well as Mori, prepared for the boys chasing this girl to burst in. The footsteps came to a halt, and it was easy to tell that the boys outside were looking around.

"Damn it, where'd she go?"

"Maybe in here?" someone asked.

The girl stiffened even more if that was possible, and her rushed appearance quickly turned into fierce poise. She might have been running from these boys, but it didn't seem as though it was from fear. The girl spun away from the door and waited for one of them to enter, but another boy spoke.

"No, that's the Host Club. I doubt she'd go in there. Come on, she probably went this way."

The first boy didn't say anything. They all just turned and ran down the other hall. As soon as they were out of hearing range the girl sighed with relief. There was a brief moment of silence before the girl seemed to suddenly realize where she was. She spun around quickly and bowed.

"I am terribly sorry for the intrusion," she said. "I could not find another place to go."

Tamaki took the girl's hand right away and bowed as she straightened to look at him.

"There is no need for you to apologize, my Lady. Visitors are always welcome." He levelled to her height and with his free hand pushed a strand of the girl's black hair behind her ear. "Especially when they're as beautiful as you."

The girl's apologetic attitude melted away almost immediately. She actually looked rather uncomfortable at Tamaki's close proximity.

"Well, that's good I guess," she said uneasily and leaned away from Tamaki's outstretched hand. "You can stop with the touching…"

Tamaki immediately backed away and bowed again. "Of course. My apologies, my Lady."

The girl gaped at him as she said slowly, "Uh, just call me Rin."

Tamaki again stood straight and said with a smile, "As you wish, Princess Rin."

The girl seemed even more disturbed by that title, but she didn't say any more on the subject. Instead she turned her russet eyes on the rest of the club members – who were all staring at her quite intently.

"Miss Rin," Kyoya said slowly, "You're bleeding."

Again there was a moment of silence. Rin looked down at her left side where there was indeed some blood seeping through her dress. She just sighed.

"Of course I am," she mumbled dejectedly. Suddenly, Tamaki jumped into action.

"Oh, my dear Princess, how ever did you come across a wound such as this?" he asked before he abruptly pointed at the rest of the group. "We must get her to the health ward right away!"

It seemed that Mori was about to step forward and probably carry her to the health office, but Rin spoke before anyone could move.

"No that won't be necessary!"

Mori stayed where he was and Tamaki whirled around to face her. "But my princess, you're hurt. I simply cannot allow you to walk around with such a wound."

"I've been walking around with it for a while," Rin insisted with a reassuring smile. "It's not that bad, I just need to redress the bandages. I have already been cleared by my doctor."

Tamaki stared down at her for a moment before he nodded and spun dramatically back around to face the club members. "Mori-senpai, retrieve a new girl's uniform as quick as you can, and Kyoya, I'm sure you have a first aid kit somewhere around here!"

The two had begun to move before Tamaki fully finished his sentence. Tamaki then turned to Rin and reached out to take her hand.

"My dear Princess, come with me. I will take you somewhere you can wait until we have proper medical supplies to tend to your grievous wound."

Before Tamaki could lead her to where he had in mind, she pulled her hand out of his.

"That really won't be necessary," she insisted. "I have my own supplies in my gym locker."

The Hitachiin twins came up beside her and said in unison, "Even so you can't walk around with that dress without calling attention to yourself so you might as well do it here."

They held their hands toward the door to the prep room. Rin looked at where they were pointing and she seemed to give in to their reason. She smiled gratefully.

"I suppose you're right; thank you very much for your hospitality," she said and then walked in the direction of the twins' outstretched hands. Kyoya, though he had gone to another part of the room, could not help but notice Rin's several changes of attitude even in just the few minutes she had been in the Host Club. He pushed his glasses up thoughtfully before he continued on his task and grabbed the first aid kit he kept in a back corner of the room in case it was needed. He entered the prep room about the same time as Mori did with her new uniform. They both walked to the back of the room where the dressing rooms were sectioned off by curtains.

"Miss Rin," Kyoya said, "we have the first aid kit and uniform for you."

Rin pulled back the curtain of the middle room and took the kit and uniform with a friendly smile.

"Thank you," she said, "and my apologies for the hassle."

Kyoya returned her smile. "It is no trouble, really."

He made no reaction, but he saw the amount of blood that had gathered on Rin's abdomen. The wound was far worse than she was letting on. He supposed it was a good thing he had brought the most heavy-duty kit with him when he was planning for something like this to happen. When Rin had once again disappeared behind the curtain, Mori and Kyoya returned to the rest of the group where Honey-chan was worriedly pulling on Haruhi's sleeve, and Tamaki was standing with a rare thoughtful expression. Kaoru and Hikaru were talking amongst themselves.

"Have you seen that girl before, Hikaru?" Kaoru asked. Hikaru shook his head.

"I don't recall ever seeing her; not even in middle school."

"I wonder who she was running from," Tamaki muttered, his fingers holding his chin thoughtfully. The twins shrugged in response.

"She's going to be alright, isn't she, Haru-chan?" Honey asked. Haruhi smiled down at him.

"Of course she is, Honey-senpai."

Kyoya wasted no time in sitting down at the table where he'd put his laptop. He opened the school's archives and searched for Rin. The way she had shown up was suspicious on its own, but none of the other members appeared to know her. Or if they did then they weren't offering up the information. Kyoya narrowed the search to girls attending the academy with the first name "Rin" but the few pictures that showed up didn't resemble this Rin in the slightest.

_It must be a nickname, _he thought. _This would be a lot easier if I knew what class she was in._

It was unsettling that he didn't know this girl as soon as he saw her. He had seen the class lists so many times that he could possibly name every student at the academy if the need should arise. Still, this girl's face did not ring any bells with him. He had not heard of a new transfer student, either, so it was highly unlikely that she had only just arrived at the academy. It was possible that she had infiltrated the academy, although from the looks of it there didn't seem to be much of a reason. She was running from some students in Ouran, so why would she go there if she didn't need to? Especially with such an injury.

Suddenly, a name popped up in Kyoya's head. Fukumoto Rinsuke. He didn't know why he should think of his classmate, as he hadn't seen her since the last day of school last year. Rinsuke was an unfortunate girl who always seemed to get into vehicular accidents that put her in hospitals. On the first day of school this year he recalled a conversation between two of his classmates…

"_Have you heard about Rinsuke?"_

"_Oh, yeah, everyone has. I heard that this time she won't be able to leave the hospital for a few months!"_

"_But won't she have to drop out of Ouran? Or at least be held back a grade?"_

"_No, this happens all the time. She apparently has an agreement with the headmaster. As long as she gets her work done with decent grades then it doesn't matter how long she's out."_

"_That's right, she had one of the highest grades in our class last year, didn't she?"_

"_Yeah, and I'm pretty sure she had only shown up at school for a total of two months. Not consecutively, though."_

"_That poor girl. I don't think I'd be able to handle being bed-ridden in the hospital AND having to continue with school work."_

"_I know; it almost doesn't seem believable."_

"_Haku!"_

"_Ow! Why'd you do that?"_

"_You can't accuse the girl of cheating when she's not even here to defend herself!"_

"_Alright, alright, just stop hitting me!"_

Kyoya pushed his glasses up and then typed in Rinsuke's full name. Her image popped up immediately, but the picture was much different than the girl that was now in the club. Rinsuke had very pale brown hair, but this Rin had jet black hair and the ends of her bangs were died a blood red. At first he was ready to write them off as different people entirely, but then he noticed Rinsuke's eye color. She, just like Rin, had flashing amber eyes. If he imagined Rinsuke's hair black, then they certainly looked like the same person. He went ahead and read her measurements anyway, and it seemed Rinsuke was the same size as Rin: 5'6" and about 130lbs. Tall and slender.

That certainly proved it, then. They were now hosting Fukumoto Rinsuke. She had excellent grades though she never showed up to class, but her family was certainly not one of the wealthiest. Kyoya couldn't recall ever having dealings with the Fukumoto's, but he had heard enough about Rinsuke to know that she was not like Haruhi. Her family was able to pay the full tuition, although with what money he was unsure. The Fukumoto family had no history of either famous people or successful businesses. He had wondered if perhaps it was Rinsuke's father who paid for the tuition, since Fukumoto was her mother's maiden name, but there appeared to be no record of Rinsuke's father. As far as he recalled, Rin avoided speaking about her father whenever the topic came up. He had always wondered about that but this current event exploded his curiosity to a whole new level.

Finished in his self-appointed task, Kyoya shut his laptop and leaned back in the chair with his arms folded across his chest. The girl, he decided, would pose neither a threat nor a gain to the Host Club, as she likely would not be around long enough to become a regular. Aside from that, she seemed rather uncomfortable when she received Tamaki's attention and probably had no desire to remain a guest. He looked at his watch and realized that she had been behind the curtain for a good ten or fifteen minutes. The other guests would be arriving soon and he doubted Rin would be able to hide what had happened if she walked out from behind the curtain with a first aid kit and a uniform stained with blood.

He looked up as he heard the door open and Rinsuke walked forward with the first aid kit in one hand and her old uniform in the other. He stood and Tamaki dashed over to her and took the uniform and kit out of her hands.

"Allow me," he said with a polite smile. "Will you be alright?"

Rin nodded and returned the smile. "I will be fine, the bleeding has actually stopped completely so it won't be a problem."

Kyoya highly doubted that.

"That's good," Tamaki sighed with relief. He turned to Kyoya who had walked toward them to take the kit off of Tamaki's hands, since the boss didn't know where he had originally got it. Kyoya took both the kit and the uniform and turned to dispose of them. He didn't believe Rinsuke when she said that she was fine, because the wound certainly did not seem that benign when he had seen the amount of blood coming from it earlier.

He folded up the ruined dress and put it inside a plastic bag so that no one would see it. Then, he put the kit back in its original place, but because of his suspicions he opened it. The smell of alcohol reached his nose almost immediately, which meant that she had used the bottle. There was also only a single roll of bandages left even though there had been four to begin with, so she needed a lot of layers to keep the blood at bay. He realized also that one of the needles in the kit had a brighter sheen than the others. The needles were for stitches, but they had never been used since nothing had actually happened that would require one of the needles, so they were a bit dull in color from misuse. If one had been sterilized with alcohol, however, it would regain some of its polish. He picked the needle up and smelled it, and sure enough the odor of alcohol was practically spilling from it. Rinsuke must have used it to stitch up her wound, and then used the alcohol to clean and sterilize it. He would have been surprised that she was able to look as though nothing had happened, but as he recalled she had been through injuries much worse than this one.

Tamaki's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "If you don't mind my asking, Rin, who was it that was chasing you?"

Kyoya put the needle back and shut the kit while listening to the conversation.

"Oh, them?" Rin asked with a nervous laugh. "I'm not sure, really. It changes every time I get on campus."

The twins both tilted their heads to the side. "What do you mean 'it changes'?"

"I mean, there is always a different group of boys trying to get my attention for one reason or another, it's no big deal."

"It seems like a big deal to me," Haruhi said. "Especially if they're harassing you to the point you hurt yourself."

Rin shook her head adamantly. "No, it's fine. They didn't know about my injury and I was the one who ran in the first place. They did not mean to cause harm to me."

"That's not what it sounded like," Kyoya stated when he had again joined the group. They all turned to look at him and his glasses flashed in the light. "I mean, they seemed fairly angry when they were shouting at one other to find you. It did not sound like they were simply trying to get your attention."

Kyoya watched Rin's face closely for a reaction, but she just laughed quietly.

"Yes, I suppose you're right. In which case I have no idea why they were chasing me. Perhaps they figured I was someone else."

Kyoya almost wanted to point out the fact that her red and black hair was not a very common thing, but he recognized Rinsuke's excellent façade. She was hiding more than just her wound, and it was something big enough for her to feign innocence. He was not going to get any answers out of her – at least not yet. So he simply held out the plastic bag containing her uniform.

"Your uniform," he said curtly.

Rinsuke took it with a grateful smile. "Thank you," she responded, and then paused before she asked, "You said you were the Host Club, right?"

"Yep, that's us," Honey said jovially.

"Would you mind terribly if… if I stayed for a while?"

Kyoya hid his surprise with his usual mask of indifference. It certainly hadn't seemed like she was comfortable in Tamaki's presence only minutes ago. Why would she want to stay there? Unless, of course, she was still trying to avoid those boys. In which case, his suspicions were confirmed and she truly did know why they were chasing after her.

"Why most certainly, my beautiful princess!" Tamaki's voice interrupted Kyoya's swift train of thought. Tamaki spun dramatically in a circle and asked, "So tell me, what sort of man are you into? The strong, silent type? The boy Lolita? Or maybe the mischievous-"

"Actually," Rin interrupted quickly, "I just want to stay in the room in case there is anyone still looking for me. I don't need a host."

"Nonsense!" Tamaki waved away her protest. "A lovely lady such as yourself must have some preference."

As Tamaki once again launched into his theatrical introduction of the different types of host members, it seemed obvious that Rin was uninterested. She knew that she needed to rest after reopening her wound so she didn't have much choice but to stay. Even if the chance was small that she ran into the boys again she didn't want to risk it. It's not like she could go home anyway; that would also take a lot of energy out of her. So, if she _had _to choose a host, then that was what she would do.

She knew immediately that she would not choose Hikaru and Kaoru; previous interactions with them warned her that they would only get on her nerves in the current state she was in. Honey was adorable but much too hyper-active and she figured she would probably get a headache from him, although she wouldn't mind him on another day. She might have chosen Mori but he always seemed to stay with Honey so he wasn't an option either. Tamaki was also a definite no. He had no inclination of personal space. That left Fujioka Haruhi or Ootori Kyoya. She knew of Haruhi but never had the pleasure of actually making his acquaintance, so she wasn't sure what he'd be like. He seemed unobtrusive and respectful, which was definitely a plus. She knew Kyoya much better, though. They were in the same class, after all. He usually remained on the quiet side as well unless he found something worth talking about, and for some reason she felt like her circumstances would be just that. He was already prying enough into her business and that was the one thing that she could not stand. She would probably choose Kyoya only if he was the only one left. Actually she might even just decide to leave if it came to that. So, she turned to Haruhi at about the same time Tamaki finally finished whatever he was rambling on about.

"If you insist, then I would like to request Haruhi," Rin said.

Haruhi smiled. "I am honored, Miss Rin."

Rin laughed quietly. "Really, just Rin is fine."

She wasn't sure how long she could keep her blissful mood up. She just wanted to punch something. Was that too much to ask? Yeah, probably. She'd only reopen her wound and that would be too much of a pain to deal with.

"It appears our other guests are nearly here," Kyoya pointed out. Indeed, it was easy to hear the chattering of many girls coming down the hall. Without further ado, the Host Club moved into position and greeted the girls as they entered.

Rin followed Haruhi afterward and they sat alone for the time being. Kyoya did not have any guests right away, so he diligently used the time to keep up the budget for the club. As he did so, he overheard one of their guests talking to Honey.

"Honey-senpai, where are everyone's costumes?" she asked.

"Huh?" Honey looked confused. "We don't have any today. We're just us! Haha~"

"Oh, okay… Then who were the two boys outside dressed as ninja?"

"There were boys outside?" Honey asked and looked at Mori. "Do you think they're the boys from earlier?"

Mori remained silent.

"Yeah, you're right," Honey nodded. "If they were then they probably would have come in sooner! Oh, but Mai-chan, did you say they were dressed as ninja?"

Mai nodded. "They were standing outside of the room talking to each other, but when they noticed the other girls and me they silently stood on either side of the door. We thought that perhaps they were new members or something. They opened the doors for us when we neared, so we thought you guys were going to be ninja today."

"Oh, I see…" Honey contemplated this for a moment and then laughed. "They must be cosplaying or something~" He chomped down on a piece of cake.

Mori looked over at Kyoya who nodded. He closed his laptop and stood to investigate these boys. If they were after Rin then he needed to have a talk with them. And then of course he would make sure they left her alone.

He was not interrupted as he made his way to the doors, but he felt a pair of eyes following him. When he glanced in the direction he was sure they came from, he didn't see anyone looking at him. He did notice that Rinsuke was directly in his line of vision; all she had to do was look away. He got the feeling that she didn't want him meddling in her business even if it was to stop those boys from harassing her. Unfortunately for her, his boss never turned away any need that a guest may have. Even if they don't express any need. Kyoya was simply avoiding any annoying scolding he might receive from Tamaki in the future if he didn't do his best to help Rinsuke.

When Kyoya opened the doors, he was met with an empty hallway. He narrowed his eyes and examined every surface he could. He even looked up at the ceiling in case the boys somehow made it up there. The hall was completely deserted. Then those boys were definitely the ones after Rinsuke. They must have left once they realized she wasn't going to be alone anytime soon. He would have to ask all of the girls for a physical description so he could find them.

Kyoya closed the doors and turned around. As he returned to his seat, he glanced over at Rinsuke again only to see if she was watching him. She was. She smiled, though, as if she were just being polite. Something in her eyes seemed dark; like a warning. A warning that Kyoya was inclined to ignore.

He interrupted Honey and his guests to quickly inquire as to who exactly Mai saw.

"I'm not sure who they were," Mai said. "One of them was wearing a mask so I couldn't see him, and the other I don't think I've ever seen before."

Kyoya nodded and took a quick note in his notebook. "Can you describe them exactly how you remember them?"

Mai nodded. "Well of course…"

She seemed uneasy, so Kyoya flashed a reassuring grin.

"I am merely curious. I have heard rumors that a couple of boys want to join the Host club. If the boys you saw are the ones who want to join then it would be helpful to know what they look like."

This explanation seemed to put Mai at ease and she smiled. "I see, then I will do my best to help you identify them. Let's see… The one with the mask was a little taller than Tamaki-senpai. He had long black hair tied in a ponytail. I don't remember his eye color, but I am pretty sure it was either green or blue. The shirt he was wearing was form-fitting so it was easy to see that he sported a very well-toned physique. The other boy was about the same size as Hikaru and Kaoru. He had dark brown, spiky hair and he was wearing a red headband. I'm pretty sure his eyes were also red; they were a lot harder to miss. He seemed kind of angry to be honest, but maybe it was just the costume. He also wore a long red scarf that seemed pretty tattered at the end. He, like the other boy, had a black form-fitting shirt and baggy black pants, like a ninja's. He also looked as though he works out. They both had katanas, I think. They were probably fake, though they looked real." Mai paused to rack her brain for any more useful information, but she shook her head. "That is really all I can remember, sorry."

Kyoya smiled and finished taking notes of the descriptions. "You were very helpful, Mai. Thank you."

Honey held his arms out as though he was asking for a hug. "Yeah, thank you, Mai-chan!"

Mai squealed. "You're so cute, Honey-chan!"

Kyoya took that as his cue to leave. He inquired some other girls about the two boys, but they all appeared to say about the same thing. That left him to wonder who those two were. He couldn't recall meeting either of them; he highly doubted they were a part of the Academy. If Rinsuke was running from them then it was likely they weren't cosplaying, and it wouldn't be too farfetched to assume that they were able to slip past security. Still, it seemed odd to him. There were more than just two boys running down the hall when Rinsuke first appeared in Music Room #3. Wouldn't they have alerted the others? Kyoya didn't have enough facts to figure it out, but he was sure he could. Those two "ninja" wanted to hurt Rinsuke for a reason that he had no clue of. Yet. For the time being, he let the subject lie. He wouldn't figure anything else out by uselessly puzzling over it.

As he sat down at a table, he stole another curious glance at Rinsuke. Though she and Haruhi had been silent before, it appeared the two were engaged in conversation, which was both surprising and not. He figured that Rin wanted to avoid as much contact as she could, which was why she didn't ask for any of the other members who were much too social. She probably didn't want to talk to himself because of his prying. Still, Haruhi had a way with people. Rinsuke appeared to be enjoying herself, even if it was just a façade to mask her irritation at the situation.

Throughout the rest of the day, many more guests trickled in, and quite a few requested Haruhi. She was getting quite popular. The few times Kyoya looked over, Haruhi and her guests were quite cheerful in each other's company, except for Rinsuke. The very moment another girl had joined the group Rin had pulled out of the conversation and only contributed when one of the others spoke to her directly. It seemed, however, that Haruhi was successfully demanding the other girls' attention. He wasn't sure whether it was because of Haruhi's personality, or because she had noticed Rin's aversion to speaking with the others and she wanted her to be comfortable with the situation at hand.

In any case, the rest of the day passed without further disturbance. Rin, surprisingly, stayed until closing time. She did not move to leave until everyone else was gone. She smiled and curtseyed politely to Haruhi.

"Thank you for letting me stay in your company," she said.

Haruhi smiled as well. "It was a pleasure to have you."

Rin, still smiling, nodded and turned to leave but stopped short when she almost ran into Tamaki.

"Are you in need of an escort, my Lady?"

Rin's smile stayed, but Kyoya could easily see the irritation in her eyes.

"No, that won't be necessary. I'm sure the boys have gone already."

Tamaki continued to stare down at her.

"I assume that you have a car waiting to take you home?"

Rin paused, and Kyoya narrowed her eyes at her hesitation.

"Yes," she finally said. "My driver will meet me the moment I am off the campus, so I won't be alone a moment longer than that."

Tamaki seemed satisfied with that answer, but Kyoya knew that was a lie. He could keep quiet about it, but if Rinsuke was in danger then he had to say something. Goodness, what had Tamaki turned him into? He looked at Rin with a sharp gaze before she had the chance to leave the room.

"And since when did the Fukumoto family have enough money to hire a driver?"

The members of the club turned to look at Kyoya with astonishment while Rin settled her amber eyes on him with a fiery glare. It lasted only a split second before it dissolved into an innocent smile. That was something she had intended only him to see.

"I am afraid I do not know what you are talking about, Ootori-san. Of course my family can hire a driver. Are you accusing me of lying?"

"I implied nothing of the sort," Kyoya responded with a similar smile. "However I don't think it was the Fukumoto's who paid for the driver – if indeed you do have one."

"Uh, Kyoya?" Haruhi interrupted nervously.

"It's fine, Haruhi," Rin said swiftly. "If you are dying to know, Ootori-san, it was my father who paid for the car. Now, if you will excuse me, I must be on my way."

And with that, Rinsuke left Music Room #3.

"Well, that was certainly intense," the twins said in unison when she was gone.

"Kyoya-senpai, what was that about?" Haruhi asked with an irate frown.

Kyoya smiled. "Nothing, just calling her out on her lie."

"Calling her out on her lie? The girl was just being harassed by a group of boys, and you treat her like _that_?"

"She is hiding something."

"That is hardly enough reason to be so rude," Haruhi scoffed.

"Of course it is," Hikaru said.

"You're talking to Kyoya," Kaoru finished.

Kyoya smirked and Haruhi sighed. "I supposed you're right. But I highly doubt she'll come back after that."

"Oh, she will," Kyoya said and absentmindedly started looking through his black notebook. All of the club members' eyes turned to him in expectance of an explanation. He just shut the notebook and said rather cheerfully, "Well, I'm afraid I must be off as well."

Haruhi couldn't help the slight terror that rose in her chest. Kyoya seemed more evil than usual. That could not be good. She only hoped that tomorrow, if Rin did show up, Kyoya would refrain from any more questions like that. She could practically feel the fire leaping between the two earlier.

"I think I agree with him," Tamaki said suddenly to break the silence.

The club members looked at their leader and were surprised to find a very uncharacteristic look of serious thought on his face.

Tamaki restated what he was agreeing with: "Lady Rin is hiding something."

* * *

_A/N: Ha ha, so I just posted this despite my better judgment. Normally I wait until I have two or three chapters before I post the first. But, well, I'm feeling impatient today, obviously. Anyway, I'm very thankful for all of you who read this, and I humbly ask your opinion on how I did. ^^ I'm mainly worried about the CANON characters. Were any of them OOC? I feel like at the end maybe they were, but I'm not sure. Thus, why I ask for reviews! Also, tell me what you think about Rin. You didn't see much of her this chapter, but the next is in her point of view so you'll get to know her a little better then. Again, thank you so much for reading my story, I am looking forward to continuing it!_

_-KC_


	2. Ramen Before Death

_A/N: Oh my goodness, I got reviews. I love you all. I wasn't expecting as much of a response, so thank you to all who reviewed/favorited/followed! Keep this up and you'll have me writing nonstop! I'm already on my way with chapter three, actually. XD _

_**Side note, it was requested that I mark the changes in POV. While I am sorry that it was difficult for some to distinguish the changes, I won't be marking those changes because it just provides too much of a break in the story. When there are a lot of people in a scene, I tend to change views a lot. I'll try to make the changes more obvious, though, so please bear with me. ^^_

_Now, you all want chapter two, so imma stop talking now. :3_

* * *

Chapter 2

Ramen Before Death

Rin let out a heavy sigh as soon as she closed the door to Music Room #3. That was certainly an experience that she could have done without. That Kyoya was far too intuitive for his own good. And too meddlesome. He was blatantly prying into her business, and that was the last thing she needed.

She shook her head with exasperation and turned down the hallway. In the end, it didn't really matter. The small amount of information he knew was insignificant, and she didn't plan on hanging around him any more than what was absolutely necessary. The Host Club was, unfortunately, the only place she could escape that group of annoying boys. It was a coincidence that she passed by the club, and it wouldn't happen again. Besides, she was going to leave in a month for her next tournament, and she would probably take off school before then to prepare.

_Australia, _Rin thought, her heart skipping a beat with excitement. This one was big. She'd been to the Australia competition only once before. That was a few years ago, and she'd lost rather terribly. She had two bad years since then in which she barely made it to the national finals, and then lost each time. But it was different this year – she was on her top game. Despite her recent injury, she had no doubt that she could win. She just had to fix her bike.

"Easier said than done," she grumbled to herself as she entered into the girl's locker room. She easily located her locker and pulled out the bag she kept her normal clothes in. With only slight difficulty due to her cut she changed out of her uniform and pulled on a pair of torn skinny jeans, a simple gray T-shirt, a pair of red Convers, and a black leather jacket. She left the new uniform in her locker and took the soiled one with her as she left the locker room.

The campus was mostly empty by now, but she still glanced around her to watch out for anyone passing by. She wasn't in the mood for confrontation, and if any of the boys from the Host Club saw her she doubted that her excuse to get them to leave her alone would hold any merit. No, she did not have a driver. But, she also didn't want a group of love-sick boys following her around.

Thankfully, she reached the entrance of the campus without running into anyone. It didn't take her long to reach her motorcycle where she parked it off to the side of the road. She smiled as soon as she saw its sleek gray surface and flashy orange highlights. She had bought it just this year; it was a 2005 Yamaha FZ-1 and just about the fastest motorbike on the market. Just her style. When she reached her bike, she glanced around, expecting her two irritating shadows to appear out of the bushes to yell at her. However, no such thing occurred.

_They must have gone home already, _she thought. She would have to talk to them as soon as she found them. Despite their irritation at her for running off in the opposite direction they had wanted her to, they hadn't entirely been smart themselves. She didn't know too much about it, but apparently the first group of girls to arrive at the Club had seen the two of them snooping outside of the door. She could be wrong, but the last time she checked, "staying hidden" did not mean being seen by twenty frolicking rich girls.

Rinsuke huffed as she opened the storage container under her seat. Her helmet was there; she took that out and replaced it with the bag holding her uniform. She then sat down on her motorcycle and pulled the black modular helmet over her head. She reached into her jacket pocket and withdrew her keys from its depths. She put they key in the ignition and the machine roared to life with a familiar hum that was like music to her ears. She smiled as she revved the engine a few times, then released the brake and screeched away from the curb.

The sensation of the tires coasting over the pavement was exhilarating, yet also calming. Rin could drive for hours and not get bored, especially when she had nowhere to be. Unfortunately, she _did _have somewhere to be. She had already spent way too much time at school. She should have been home hours ago, and she drove as such.

Though Rin was sure it wasn't the smartest idea to go too fast considering her wound had just reopened, she couldn't help but push the speed limit. As she came to more crowded streets, she rarely slowed down. She zipped in between cars, and earned quite a few angry honks. She didn't care: this was child's play to her. She only cared to slow down when the traffic signals commanded it, or if she noticed a police officer nearby.

With the rate she was driving at, the journey home passed in the blink of an eye. What should have been a thirty-minute drive was reduced to nearly half that. Rinsuke swung into her father's estate, barely giving enough time for the gatekeeper to open the black, steel gate that surrounded the property. She sometimes wondered why her old man needed such a precaution, but then again, who was she to question it? She was the one who requested the services of Youta and Kaito; both of whom weren't entirely necessary for her protection. Although, they had certainly come in handy on many occasions… today, she noted, was not one of them.

Rin drove her motorcycle at a speed probably considered reckless as she circled in front of the main building of the estate: a two-story mansion with too many rooms for her to count. It was a more modern building, as it had been constructed not three years earlier, with a slightly traditional Japanese twist. Her father had never been one to deviate too far from tradition. There were plenty of fountains and vegetation all native to Japan surrounding both the front and back of the mansion. Beyond that, there were many fields and gardens each with their different themes that centered on distinct terrain from other countries. Rin's father had way too much time on his hands, but lucky for him he had enough money to deal with it. So he had spent many long months designing this place until he thought it was perfect.

Off to the side of the main mansion was the garage; specifically placed there for Rin. That was where she was headed. She flew down the small road leading through rows upon rows of trees and decorative bushes, until with a circular sweep she screeched to a halt in front of the building. It wasn't too large, but there was enough space in its stone halls for a car, three bikes, and all of the tools she could possibly need to care for her vehicles. Plus a little extra room for her to work.

Rin powered down her motorcycle and pulled off her helmet as the white door slid smoothly open. She shook out her hair so it wasn't stuck annoyingly to her head, and stood before she paid any attention to the two young men standing in the entrance to the garage. Youta, as always, stood there with his arms crossed over his chest and his red eyes glaring in perpetual anger. Kaito stood next to his shorter counterpart, a little more relaxed, but he still had a stern expression on his face. Or at least what could be seen of his face – his mask covered all but his eyes. Rin smiled at the two as she stepped off of her bike and laid the helmet on the seat.

"Well, don't you two look just peachy to see me?" she asked in mock cheerfulness.

"Rin, why did you let those boys chase you?" Youta immediately demanded.

Rin's smile turned abruptly into a distasteful frown and she sighed. "Always have to cut to the chase, don't you?"

She didn't respond to his question, nor did she wait for an answer from him. She pushed past Youta and Kaito so she could get started right away on her repairs; she had minimal time to do so.

"Rin," Youta growled angrily as he and Kaito followed her. "It was a stretch letting you ride your motorcycle to school. I had suspected that you would at least try to avoid any troublesome situations, and that is the _only _reason I didn't take your keys away."

Rin snorted. "Is somebody forgetting who pays him?"

She started rummaging through one of her toolboxes. Youta had to wait to answer or she would probably pretend like she couldn't hear him. As soon as she found what tools she wanted, she walked over to her most prized possession: a dirt bike that she had designed and built herself. In its prime, it was a beautiful machine with vibrant colors: red, orange, lime green. No two parts were the same color, and it was honestly obnoxious to look at. She hadn't ever been one to hide in the background when it came to her bikes. Now, however, it looked little more than a hopelessly beat up dirt bike without any shine to its parts. She unfortunately didn't have the time to make another one, or she would have done that in the first place. She had to hope her repairs would be enough to hold her through the Australia tournament. If not, her season would end right then and there. That was something she could not afford.

"Your father pays us," Youta reminded her as she knelt down next to her bike and started fiddling with some of the parts. "It doesn't matter whether your name is on the contract or not, the money is coming from your father's pocket."

Rin didn't say anything; they'd had this argument before. Youta probably knew full well what she was thinking: her father paid for the contract then handed it over to her. That should automatically make her the boss of them, except it didn't. Before her father agreed to let her have them as her "hound dogs," as he liked to say, he had ordered that her protection came above even her own wishes, and that trumped anything she could come up with. She didn't agree, but was unwilling to argue further.

Youta leaned over her shoulder and said in an irritated tone, "Rin, just answer my question."

"It's Rin-sama to you, _Youta-chan._"

Youta rolled his eyes at the insult and straightened, his arms still folded. "Fine, _Rin-sama_. Would Your Grace be so kind as to _answer my question?"_

Rin remained silent for a moment longer before she finally replied. "I let them chase me, Youta, because unlike you I can't resolve all of my conflicts with violence. If I beat them up then they would tell their daddies who would cause more trouble for me than I care to deal with."

"So you ran away from them? How does that count as solving a conflict?"

"If I didn't run then I'd probably be in the hospital again. You and Kaito might have integrity, but those boys certainly do not."

Youta scowled down at Rin as she worked on her bike, systematically tightening and removing parts as she saw fit. The pile of broken pieces on the floor next to her seemed to be continuously growing. After a while of silence, Youta finally sighed and leaned back against a bike that was parked close by; it was an older model of a Yamaha that Rin had gotten some few years back. She couldn't legally drive at the time, but she was a very persuasive person when it came to any sort of motorbike.

"If you're going to continue to get hurt or harassed by people then you just shouldn't go," Youta bluntly stated.

Rin paused as she screwed a nut tighter to hold a part she just attached. The moment was brief – she continued working almost immediately.

"I happen to like going to school," she said. Generally, it was a nice, quiet break from her hectic lifestyle. Of course it would probably be more enjoyable if she had some friends. Or if she stopped angering the boys with her presence. She sometimes wondered what got them so worked up, but in the end it was fairly obvious. There were few people who knew about her father, but those that did… Well, they didn't often know because she or her father said something to them. They dug deep and uncovered all of the dirty little secrets she had been forced to keep. Truly, it was a wonder that her whole life story wasn't all over the campus, but even though her father had fallen out of many families' good graces, he still had some of his influence. For that, she was beyond grateful.

"Rin," Youta interrupted her train of thought, "You don't even know anyone at that school. What is the point of attending in your free time if you only show up a few days every couple of months?"

Rin frowned and pointed her wrench forcefully at Youta.

"I talked to plenty of people today, thank you, and I will continue to do so. I'm not a hopeless introvert."

"Perhaps not as hopeless as Kaito, but you're still not like the other girls at that school."

That earned Youta a dark glare from both Rin and Kaito, which he of course ignored.

"And oh yeah," Youta continued, "speaking of the company you kept today, your dad is going to be furious when he finds out that you went to a host club."

"So don't tell him about it," Rin replied dismissively as she went back to her bike. Youta just gave her a blank stare, no doubt wondering if she was being serious or not. Rin sighed and returned her gaze to him. "It's not like I did anything in there; I didn't even let them touch me."

"That really doesn't help your situation very much."

Rin paused, then held up her wrench in a mock salute. "I, Fukumoto Rinsuke, do solemnly swear that I will never set foot in such a terribly evil place again. I will burn my clothes and soak many hours in a bath to be rid of the dreadful amount of cooties I must have received from being in the presence of the opposite gender."

Youta rolled his eyes. "At least pretend to take this seriously, would you?"

"I was," Rin assured as she threw another broken part onto the ever-growing pile.

"I doubt that," Youta grumbled under his breath. Rin heard him, but chose to ignore him.

She glanced at him as she said seriously, "Think for a moment about who I am and what my heritage is. Do you really think that if I defend myself from this matter, it will make my situation any better?"

Youta paused, and his stern expression slowly melted into an almost nervous smile. Rin flashed her winning grin that she always gave to the cameras or her opponents as she passed by them during competition. Youta deflated further at that, and then some more when he thought about Rin's father. It really didn't matter what Rin said or did, most of the events she was part of were out of her control. Rin was right; she was doomed from the beginning. Still, Youta frowned as he realized something still didn't sit right with him.

"Even so, Rin," he said, "you could have left the club once the boys were gone. Do you have any idea how difficult you make it to protect you?"

Rin paused in the middle of loosening one of the parts that had been smashed during the crash. Her left side throbbed suddenly, and the memory of her stitches ripping from her wound filled her mind. It had been more painful than she had let on, and also the true reason she stayed at the club after she had redressed her wound. She needed to rest after such an expenditure, and definitely could not risk crossing the path of those boys again.

"No," she said quietly, "I couldn't have left."

Youta furrowed his brow in confusion, probably about to ask why she couldn't have, but Kaito beat him to it.

"Rinsuke," he said, his voice much deeper that Youta's. "What is this?"

Rin looked up to see Kaito holding up the plastic bag that contained her ruined uniform. Her eyes widened and she abruptly stood, looking past her bodyguards to where she had parked her Yamaha. It was not exactly a short distance away. She turned her eyes to Kaito who stared right back with his calming, blue eyes. Once, Rin's fire might have been extinguished by his overpowering composure, but not now.

"When did you go over there?" she demanded. "And why are you looking through my stuff?!"

Kaito narrowed his eyes. "Answer the question."

Rin stood there a moment with her fists clenched at her sides, but she knew this would not be an argument that she could win. She sighed and ran a hand through her long hair, probably thoroughly tangling it. Then, she held out her hand.

"Give me the dress, Kaito."

Kaito still stared at her through narrowed eyes, but he handed over the bag. At first, Rin had been planning to somehow remove the bloodstain from the uniform, but she doubted she could do that now that it had been soaking into the material for so long. She took the bag and marched to the back of the garage where two large trash cans served as her part disposal. She tossed the yellow dress in one and let the lid slam closed.

She heard Youta ask Kaito what was in the bag, and the older ninja obliged to tell him. When Rin returned to her bike and once again began to silently work, Youta resumed his firm stance, his arms crossed irritably over his chest.

"Tell us what happened, Rin."

Rin would have made another comment about how she was in charge of the two of them and therefore didn't need to tell them anything, but she figured that would only serve against her. This was not a subject she could simply avoid, and she would rather just say it than involve her father. If Kaito was worried about her, she had no doubt that he would go to her father if she refused to talk about it.

"My stitches tore while I was running," she finally mumbled and cringed in wait for the onslaught. This time, it came as expected.

"They _what?_" Youta practically shouted. "Rin, you were just starting to heal. Your doctor said not to do anything too rash, such as run down the hallway of your school or recklessly ride your motorcycle, and what do we let you do? Or rather, what do you force us to let you do? If you keep on like this then you'll never heal, and you won't be able to compete!"

Rin rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on, Youta. A little scrape like this wouldn't stop you from doing your job, would it? Well, it isn't going to stop me, either."

Youta let out an exasperated growl before he replied harshly, "Rin, you are sixteen and in high school. You have your whole life ahead of you. Don't ruin it because of an injury you received from being too proud to take a break."

"Too proud?" Rin asked, then snorted. "Yeah, I'm so proud that I purposefully got myself injured again today just so that I'll still be hurt when I go to compete. That makes perfect sense."

Youta took a step toward her, and Rin whipped her wrench toward him as though pointing a dagger.

"I don't want to hear any more from you," she hissed. "If I don't compete in this next competition then my career is over, you understand? My contract will expire and _no one _is going to sign on to the illegitimate daughter of _Hoshino Ryuunosuke_."

She said her father's name with the disgust that it deserved. Really, she didn't care that she was illegitimate. If she was born to a man with a different name and history, she probably wouldn't be worried about anyone finding out about it. She just _had _to be sired by the most disgraceful engineer in human history. In any case, her tone shut Youta up. He looked surprised at Rin's sudden and dangerous solemnity, and he withheld any more of the argument he may have come up with. Even Kaito was subdued by Rin's words.

When she was sure neither of the ninja were going to press the issue any further, she went back to diligently fixing her bike. Youta and Kaito remained in the garage a moment longer before Youta mumbled something about checking the perimeter and the two disappeared like ghosts that ceased to exist. Rin stopped working as soon as they left. She stared at the tools in her hands and then sighed; this year was definitely one of the hardest she'd had to push through. She only hoped she could piece herself back together in enough time for the competition. One month was not a lot of time.

Suddenly, a loud ring sounded from the area she kept her tools. She glanced up to the top of one of her toolboxes where she had carelessly tossed her now vibrating phone. She rarely brought it to school with her, considering anyone who needed to contact her first went through her agent. The only one who had her personal number was her mother. Despite her current emotional state, Rin couldn't help but smile as she dropped her tools and picked up her phone.

"Konbanwa, Mama!" she said cheerfully into the phone. "How are you today?"

"Konbanwa, Rinsuke dear," her mother responded in her usual tender tone. "I am doing fine, how about you?"

"Eh, okay I guess," Rin said as she leaned back against the counter that protruded from the wall next to her toolbox. "I finally went to school today."

"Oh, how exciting!" her mother said. She sounded more ecstatic than Rin herself. "Isn't this your first day this year?"

Rin glanced off to the side at a calendar that was buried underneath her many carelessly placed items. She could barely see the month: June. It had been nearly three months since the beginning of school.

"Yes, today was my first."

"And did you meet anyone new?"

Rin thought back to her time at the Host Club. She had completely ignored the other girls when they were introduced to her, so she didn't count them. It was her first time meeting Haruhi, though. She nodded.

"Hai. I met a nice boy today named Haruhi. He's in Class A and I think he said he's a first year."

"Oh, a boy. And a nice one at that. Is he cute?"

Rinsuke snorted. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

Her mother chuckled into the phone, and Rin could just imagine her dark eyes light up with glee. "I think I'll take that as a yes~ My Rinsuke has a crush~"

Rin rolled her eyes, but her smile didn't fade as she said indignantly, "He's a year younger than me, and also shorter than me. If I ever said he was cute then it would be because he's like a little brother to me."

She left out the fact that she hadn't really been paying attention to him anyway. Her mind was too preoccupied with the matter of preventing herself from yelling at her wound which, at the time, had been throbbing uncontrollably.

"That's what they all say," her mother hummed.

Rin just huffed and changed the subject: "How is work going?"

"Oh, you know, the horses are as stubborn as always."

"Of course, they're stallions raised to win, Mom. Did you expect any different?"

"I wouldn't dare."

Rin smiled. Her mother was a horse trainer and a vet; she trained horses to race and provided medical care to most of the race horses whether they were hers or not. Her heart was much too big to leave an animal suffering just so her own stallions would have a better chance to win.

And then, as if on cue, Rin heard a high-pitched whinny come from one of the nearby horses.

"Oh dear," her mother sighed, "That would be Stormy Breeze. I think he's upset with me; he hasn't been out of his stall all day."

Rinsuke had to physically stop herself from laughing at the name – she always thought that the owners of horses named them the silliest of things.

"Does duty call then?" she asked her mother.

"Yes, it does. I'm sorry honey, I'll talk to you some more tomorrow, alright?"

"Okay, Mama, give a kiss to Bo-chan for me will you?"

Bo was Rin's favorite horse of the ones her mother had trained, mostly because she had been there at his birth and got to name him. His full name was Bonaventura, which was a name of Italian origin meaning "good fortune." Bo had not been expected to live long past birth, as he was dangerously early due to his great size. He survived, and was now one of the top racehorses in the world.

"Of course," her mother said – it was almost a tradition for Rin to mention Bo. "Oyasuminasai!"

"Ja-ne, Mama!"

The signal cut off and Rin shut her phone, her happy mood lingering for only a moment before quickly subsiding. She stared at the phone and the small charm that hung off the end of it. The charm was a brown horse faded from age, and missing part of its tail. Her mother had bought the pendant for her eight years ago at her first horse race; a distant but still precious memory. Since then, Rin had barely seen her mother, because she started competing in motocross when she was nine. When her mother wasn't away with her horses, then Rin was training and competing in other countries. Still, she felt closer to her mom than to her father who was always close, but hidden behind one closed door or another.

She had only stayed with her father during the times her mother was away, and she hadn't even met him before she started to compete. In a way she felt that he only started paying any attention to her because she showed the promise of making him some cash, until recently when she hit her bump in the road. At the beginning of her career, it was nothing but gold medals. She hadn't seen that color after a competition since the last time she won the nationals three years ago. Even this year the highest place she got was silver, but even so she felt as though she might win this time around. Perhaps it was because she had to. It was gold or it was back to freelancing, which she couldn't afford. Despite what she had told Kyoya about her father paying for her "driver," she was mostly living off of her own money, and she intended to keep it that way. She wanted little to no help from Ryuunosuke.

"Focus, Rinsuke," she said suddenly to herself. On her phone, the time said 7:00. That meant that she had thirteen hours until school started again the next day. She could work another five hours on her bike, and then two or three on homework, depending on how much she had. That would give her three or four hours of sleep; a fairly decent amount considering how much time she lost due to how late she stayed after school. With a decisive nod, Rin set down her cell on the counter and stood up straight.

She stretched and twisted around to get herself ready for the long haul; she would not stop for a break until she accomplished a decent amount of repairs. Not even for dinner. Unless it was home-cooked ramen. She might stop for that…

Before she could act on her hunger impulses, she heard a slightly irritated _meow _from the ground. She looked down to see her father's overly plump tabby cat, Sayo.

"What do you want?" she asked the little beast, who growled in response.

Rin rolled her eyes, but bent down to hoist the cat into her arms.

"Oof, you are getting fat," she complained. The tabby didn't seemed to mind her insult in the slightest. He just nuzzled his head under her chin and started purring as she affectionately rubbed his belly with her free hand. She pet him for a few moments and buried her nose into his fur, relishing the soft comfort it gave her. The moment couldn't last for long, however. She needed to get back to work.

"Alright, enough of that," she said sharply, reverting to her hateful façade. She always told others that she hated the furry thing, and sometimes she really did, but then there were other times that Sayo appeared as if he knew exactly what she needed. He was probably the only one who knew every secret she had to keep, and he was the only one who didn't care about her family name, or her past failures. All he wanted was to cuddle, and sometimes to painfully tear his claws through her flesh. She was told it was something cats did out of love, but for some reason she doubted that.

After a minute, Rin gently set Sayo down on the ground, and she returned to her task with a little bit of her vigor restored. She had to admit, sometimes cat-therapy worked miracles. She was able to work diligently for the next hour or so, and thankfully she didn't have any interruptions. At about 8:30, she paused to take in all of the distress she had just caused her vehicle.

It was practically barren at the front and right side; the destroyed or twisted parts all in the pile that now stood several inches off the ground. Rin sighed as she realized that most of the parts were ones that she didn't have any spares of. One would think that being contracted to the damn Honda Company would come with some benefits: like free repairs. For some reason, it came only with enough money for very basic repairs, low-class travel expenses, and the entry fees for the competitions her managers chose for her. She hadn't a clue why Ryuunosuke ever agreed to let her sign on to such a horrible deal.

Nevertheless, she had to make do. And so she would probably have to go out and buy her own parts. She glanced outside and realized just how dark it was. It was difficult to tell when she was working; there were few windows to let the outside light in so the lights were practically always on. Rin knew that it was too late to go out part-shopping, so she would have to save that for tomorrow. At the least, she could make some repairs with the few spare parts that she did have.

As she was searching through her stores of various bolts and valves, a sharp pang stabbed through her stomach. At first, she thought it was due to her stitches, but soon she realized that it was her body crying out in hunger. She hadn't eaten since lunch. Her mind wandered back to one of her earlier thought trains, and she once again conjured up the image of a steaming bowl of home-cooked ramen. She really didn't have time to eat…

But, Ramen. Enough said.

"Youta!" she called against her mind's will. As she waited she grabbed a few of the parts she would need, and counted the seconds. She had just reached the number six when suddenly Youta slammed open the back door to the garage. He was looking around wildly, his hand on his katana, as he waited for his enemy to appear. By that time, Rin was crouched down beside her bike and fairly certain that her bodyguard couldn't see her from where he was standing.

"Rin?" he asked, slowly sliding his katana out of the sheathe on his back.

Rin did not look up from where she was hidden behind her bike as she ordered simply, "Go get me some ramen."

Youta's eyes finally landed on where she was working, alive and unharmed aside from the injuries she'd already sustained. His eyebrow twitched but he easily slid his katana back into its sheathe.

"What kind do you want?" he grumbled.

"Surprise me."

Youta sniffed. If he did that, he had a feeling she would scold him for getting her the wrong kind of ramen. Nonetheless, he was hungry too. So to the kitchen he went, leaving Kaito behind to watch over Rin, who was in her official work mode. The only thing that would stop her progress now was ramen or death. Preferably the first. Ramen always came before death.

Ramen aside, Rin took no breaks. She worked until one o'clock on her bike, an hour later than planned, but even then she didn't want to stop. Though she had a lot of things missing, she still found plenty of other things to tweak and test. Her bike couldn't have a single flaw or she could unwittingly cause it to fall apart during her races. It took a stern scolding from Kaito to get her to stop.

"Rinsuke, it's past midnight," he said as he walked into the garage. Rin had no idea where Youta was, but was happy enough to avoid his unnecessary shouting.

"I am aware," Rin responded in a monotone.

"Go to sleep."

"I will when I'm finished."

"You are never finished."

Rinsuke didn't respond. She wouldn't deny that she was never really satisfied with her work – she always felt that she could change something for the better and had a lot of fun testing out her theories – however in this instance she knew she could not stop until her bike was completely repaired. When it became clear that Kaito's observation didn't help his case, he spoke again with a slightly curious tone.

"So what exactly are you going to do about school tomorrow if you sleep in late again? From what I could observe from your teacher he wasn't overjoyed that you showed up when the school day was already half over."

Rin stopped, her eyebrow twitching. She hated when Kaito was right. Her agreement with the headmaster would only hold as long as she was studious when she did attend school, and she had already informed him that she would be there for a few weeks. She couldn't just skip classes or not show up at all; that would look extremely bad and make it harder for her to get away with things in the future.

"Fine," she said tersely and indignantly gathered up her tools. She didn't put them away neatly, just sort of threw them into separate drawers of her toolbox until they all fit. Strangely, though motorbikes were certainly her passion, she was never neat and tidy with her work. Her room was almost always spotless, and she organized her schoolwork impeccably. She hated having too many of her clothes dirty at once, and she always cleaned her dishes herself even though there were servants to do that. She simply hated being the cause of any untidiness… until it came to her garage. That was often very cluttered.

Rinsuke walked over to her Yamaha, which was still dutifully waiting for her outside, and she quickly moved it inside the garage. She waited until Kaito was outside and then she shut the large door. She exited out the side door, switching the lights off as she did so, and together with Kaito and Youta, who had apparently been waiting outside, she walked back to the main mansion.

There were few servants about the house this late at night, so Rinsuke didn't run into anyone. She coasted the wooden and paper halls with quiet efficiency. She hated being loud in her home, but still she wanted to avoid a run-in with Ryuunosuke. She walked quickly enough that she could dodge to the side in an empty room if she saw him approaching.

Luckily, though, the halls remained deserted aside from her and the two silent shadows following her. Sometimes they could be surprisingly quiet, and it was a nice break from all of Youta's smart-mouthing and Kaito's strict scolding. It left Rin more able to think, which she generally avoided doing while she was repairing one of her bikes. She liked to be able to have a blank mind when she was with her tools; it was easier than working with unending thoughts flowing through her head.

Once Rinsuke reached her room, she dismissed Youta and Kaito to do whatever ninjas do. She entered her room and looked around at the interior with slight distaste. Since it was Ryuunosuke's house, she didn't bother with decorations. That would make it feel too much like home.

She had a king-sized bed pushed off to the left corner of the room, a desk pushed against the back wall, and a walk-in closet off to the right with her clothes. Her shoes she kept at the front door; Ryuunosuke kept the long-standing tradition of indoor and outdoor shoes, though Rin's mother never cared. It had been a difficult habit to break, wearing the same shoes both in and outside the house. She had received many a scolding from forgetting this simple rule.

Next to Rin's closet was a bathroom that was stocked full with medical supplies. Rin had her frequent injuries to thank for that. She roughly grabbed a baggy T-shirt and shorts from her closet to use as PJ's, and then stepped into the bathroom with a quiet sigh. She was not looking forward to this.

She took her jacket off and hung it on the doorknob, then unceremoniously threw her dirty shirt on the ground. She stared at the bandages wrapped around her side with an evil glare. She could see a very small splotch of blood seeping through, but it had long since dried. Still, the fact that it bled through even a little was a testament to how poorly she had treated herself earlier running through the halls. Well, it was too late to be sorry about it now. Instead, she opened one of the drawers beneath her sink and grabbed bandages, antiseptic, and a clean washcloth.

With a grimace, Rin slowly started to pull away the bandages wrapped around her. As she suspected, when she was getting to the end some of the stiches caught on the material. It stung a little to pull them free, but it was not enough to reopen the wound or pull the strings out.

When she had successfully removed the bandage she tossed it in the trashcan, then inspected the wound in the large mirror. The stitches she redid were a little sloppy, but they seemed to be holding well enough. Rin still could hardly understand how she was able to do that herself; her hands had been shaking endlessly as she was doing so. But, if she alerted the Host Club members of her need to go to the hospital then she would be stuck there longer than necessary, and Ryuunosuke would probably show up simply furious. She didn't want that, and she especially wasn't fond of the chance that the boys in the Host Club might accompany her to the hospital if she needed to go there. She would have to give her real name, and then Kyoya would be even keener to probe into her business. She definitely couldn't let him find out her father's name.

That thought graced Rin's face with a scowl, but she shook her head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking of such trivial things.

Rin grabbed the washcloth and wetted it with warm water from the faucet. She then gently started scrubbing all the dried blood away from her wound. As she did so, the memory of the broken piece of metal slicing this sharp cut into her flashed through her mind. She gripped the counter angrily with her free hand and continued to scrub at her skin.

She would prefer never to think about what happened on that night, but she knew that this wound would provide a nasty scar in the future. That would be enough to bring the memory back every time she looked at it.

Her mood now thoroughly turned sour, Rin lost some of her control as she rinsed the washcloth and then resumed scrubbing again. She put too much pressure on the wound and a quick stab of pain shot through her body. She pulled the washcloth away and bit down on her tongue to keep from crying out. Her hand gripping the counter became sore as she vented all of her strength toward squeezing the granite into dust. When the pain passed, and it did rather quickly, Rin let out an irritated sigh.

"That bastard is going to pay for this," she hissed quietly to herself.

Rin finished washing her wound without further incident, and then gently rubbed some antiseptic onto the laceration. That done, she wrapped a few layers of new bandages around her waist, then proceeded to change into her pajamas. She threw her dirty clothes into the hamper at the side or her room, leather jacket not included, then grumpily made her way over to her bed.

As soon as she sat down on her soft mattress, her eyes caught the sight of a few open books on her desk. Rin hung her head with disappointment. After all that, she was so ready to fall asleep. But she hadn't done her homework yet.

Grudgingly, she stood and walked over to the work table with feet nearly as heavy as lead. As she sat down, she cracked her knuckles and stretched in an effort to wake herself up. Then, she diligently hit the books. At least the material she had learned today wasn't difficult; she should be done in an hour.

Or, _should_ have finished in one hour. It took three. By the time she was finally finished, it was already five o'clock in the morning.

Rinsuke stared at the clock in disbelief. After all the effort Kaito made of trying to get her into bed early… Still, she was too tired to worry about it now. Her alarm would go off in an hour and a half. At least she would get _some _sleep.

However, come the time for her to wake, Rin practically threw her alarm clock out the window above her bed. She could tell without a shadow of a doubt that this day would be absolutely terrible.

* * *

_A/N: Haha, poor Rinsuke. Even I don't have to suffer through only a single hour of sleep a night. I'm so cruel. Well, this chapter was mainly so you all could get to know Rin a little better, and I hope you all like her! My evil side also hopes you are just as in the dark as Kyoya is about Rin's father. Muahaha. Questions? Comments? The review box is just a click away! :D And again, thank you so much for reading my story. :)_


	3. Finally, a Challenge

Chapter 3

Finally, a Challenge

The alarm was blaring like the sirens on twenty-thousand and one fire trucks. Yes, it sounded that loud and obnoxious. Not for the first time, Kyoya had proven that an hour of sleep definitely wasn't enough, especially in the middle of a school week.

He opened his eyes and glared at his alarm clock for a moment before he reached over and turned it off. School would start in an hour and a half. He had minimal time to get ready, considering he liked to arrive early to school to get a little necessary work done before class. Kyoya stared for a few moments at the red numbers on the clock, wishing he could add a few more hours to the day.

He stopped himself in the middle of that thought and shook his head. _What a foolish notion._

He sat up and rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand, hoping to remove some of his weariness. He threw his covers off of him and as soon as his feet touched the floor, thoughts filled his mind of the day ahead.

As always, there was a considerable amount of accounting he had to do for the club; that was nothing new. Honey continued to order endless sweets and Tamaki's theatrics consumed money as though there was no such thing as bankruptcy. The day appeared to be fairly uneventful. That is, except for one thing.

Kyoya allowed a small smile to grace his lips as he took his glasses from his bed stand and pushed them onto his nose. His room came into focus around him and he stood to get ready for the day.

His morning routine was fairly average: shower, brush teeth, comb hair, put on uniform, eat breakfast, grab school supplies and leave. The one thing different about this day's routine was that his thoughts weren't entirely filled with the Host Club. Instead, as he got himself ready, his mind remained focused on his newest challenge: Fukumoto Rinsuke.

She had been evasive to his direct questions yesterday, and she remained so even when he was no longer in her presence.

He had done some digging into her records at Ouran, but nothing significant was listed about her aside from her phone number and address. The only family member she had on record was her mother, Fukumoto Aika, and the only contact information for her as well was a phone number and address. The address was the same as Rinsuke's, which was a disappointment. Kyoya had thought that maybe Rin would have a different address – her father's. After all, he didn't believe that the man was as absent from her life as she let on. She did say that he was the one who paid for her driver, and that also probably meant her tuition.

Nonetheless, Kyoya had been curious. He looked up the address, as he wasn't familiar with the street name. The house was apparently in a part of the city similar to Haruhi's, though the families there were just a touch more wealthy and the neighborhood was more suburban. Rin's house was located nearby a track and stables, which made sense. Kyoya was aware of Aika's occupation as a horse trainer.

Aside from that, Kyoya had been unable to find anything of significance about her life outside of school. He could make a few guesses on some of the information he found. For instance: Rinsuke hadn't started attending Ouran Academy until she was in the fourth grade. Before that, she had been enrolled in a public school a few miles away from her mother's house. That implied that Rinsuke's father hadn't been a part of the picture until then. Aika's salary hadn't changed much over the years, and while it wasn't low, it certainly was not enough to pay for Ouran. Also, Rin apparently hadn't started out in class A. She had at first been in class C, but because of her academic achievements she had been bumped up to class B in middle school, and then to class A in high school. And she did all this despite her very frequent accidents, which like this year often kept her out of school for months on end. If anything was suspicious, it was that she had been so accident-prone since she was that young. With that many injuries she should have been physically handicapped, or if not then she shouldn't have been able to excel so quickly in school. Her situation at Ouran was more than just apprehensive.

Kyoya had thought about calling Aika to question her a little about her daughter, but decided against it. She was reported to be out of town at a race and he doubted she would have much time to talk. He also didn't want to alert Rin of his interest in her too soon; she would probably become even more defensive than she already was. He would just have to wait to call Aika at a more appropriate time.

Kyoya's morning routine went smoothly, and he actually left his house a few minutes early. When he arrived at Ouran there were a few other early risers, but aside from that the campus was fairly quiet. Kyoya went straight to his class room and pulled out his laptop to begin planning for the day's expenses.

For half an hour at least he was able to work in peace, but soon students started to trickle into the class. Some were courteous enough not to interrupt him as he tapped away at the keys, but others were less inclined to leave him be. He soon had to shut his laptop in order to entertain his classmates, many of whom he couldn't afford to offend.

As the clock ticked on, Kyoya found himself glancing at it every so often. Rinsuke had come late to school the day before, or he would have known of her return to school sooner, since she was his classmate. Still, she had to have shown up at one point or another. He wondered if she would miss the first part of the day again. From what he could recall of few previous interactions with her, she didn't have any particular fancy for Japanese literature. About five minutes before class was about to start, Kyoya pretty much gave up on her coming to class. Everyone aside from Tamaki and Rinsuke were in class already.

At that thought, the door suddenly burst in as the Suoh heir waltzed into the room with his usual flamboyance.

_Speak of the devil, _Kyoya thought as he watched his friend.

"Hello, my beautiful classmates," he said cheerfully. Most of the boys gave Tamaki small waves, but the girls of course greeted him with squeals of excitement. Tamaki responded to each in turn with his charming looks and words. Kyoya just waited.

When Tamaki was finished with his rudimentary greetings he turned to Kyoya with sparkling eyes.

"Kyo-ya," Tamaki said playfully as he sat down on top of his best friend's desk. He leaned close to him and asked, "How is Mommy doing today?"

"Fine, I suppose," Kyoya sighed. He then narrowed his eyes. "Might I ask what you want, Tamaki?"

Tamaki pouted at Kyoya's question. "Nothing at all, Kyoya. Can't I wonder about my friend's well-being without seeking for anything in return?"

Kyoya stared at him. Tamaki didn't respond for a moment, but when it was clear to him that Kyoya didn't believe him he laughed.

"Mommy knows Daddy so well," he said and then suddenly held up a finger with a serious look. "I have an idea for tomorrow's theme."

Just then, the starting bell rang and the teacher walked into the classroom. Tamaki smiled.

"I'll tell you later."

He stood and went over to his seat. The teacher, Mr. Adachi, greeted the class once everyone was seated and paying attention. He, as usual, began to give a quick overview of what he wished to accomplish that day in class. About halfway through this itinerary, the door suddenly opened and a rather flustered-looking Rin stepped inside. Adachi turned to her and raised an eyebrow. Rinsuke bowed right away, panting heavily. She apparently had a habit of running before she stepped into rooms.

"I am very sorry for being late," she said between deep breaths. "I ran into some traffic on the way here."

Adachi frowned. "That is hardly an excuse… but you may have the wrong classroom. I was not informed of a new student."

Rinsuke straightened as she looked at Mr. Adachi, her brows knitted together in confusion. Then, making a sudden realization she smiled.

"Oh, that's right! I remember the headmaster said you were a new teacher." She bowed again politely. "I am Fukumoto Rinsuke."

As soon as she said her name, Mr. Adachi seemed to understand exactly who she was. As a matter of fact, he understood so well that he apparently decided to dismiss her tardiness.

"Ah, Miss Fukumoto, it is a pleasure to have you with us." He gestured to the back where there was an empty seat. "You may have a seat there."

Rin nodded and obediently moved through the rows of desks to where the empty seat was. The eyes of the class followed her, and Kyoya took notice of how Rin kept her head up and walked with dignity, probably to make up for the way she entered into the classroom. She didn't make eye contact with a single person, and no one raised a hand to say hello. Rinsuke didn't appear to mind; she just sat down at her desk and waited patiently for the teacher to begin. Mr. Adachi continued on from where he had left off, and for the time being Kyoya put his own thoughts aside to pay attention. He did, however, intend to confront Rin once it was time for the teachers to change classes.

-K-

As soon as the bell rang, Kyoya stood and (much to Tamaki's disappointment) walked over to where Rinsuke was seated. She was still engrossed in the novel they had been reading in class, or at least she pretended to be, but when she noticed him she looked up. At some point during the period she had put her hair up in a ponytail, though it was down before. Her hair still reached down to the middle of her back, but it no longer covered her ears which, Kyoya noticed, had two piercings on each lobe as well as numerous ear cuffs. She seemed a little surprised that it was him standing there, but she at least had the wits to smile. Kyoya had no doubt she hadn't forgotten his comment yesterday about her finances, however she was smart enough to let it go, at least for the time being.

"Hello, Ootori-san," she greeted.

Kyoya smiled. "Good morning, Rinsuke. I am glad you could make it to class today."

He noted the doubt in her eyes when she said a soft, "Thank you." She then looked at him expectantly, knowing that he hadn't just come over there to say hello.

"I wanted to speak with you about the dress we gave you yesterday," he informed her. Rin didn't appear surprised by this, but he thought he saw some annoyance flash through her eyes. She looked past him, presumably at the clock on the wall, and nodded.

"Of course," she said, "what about it do you want to discuss?"

"Ah, I merely wanted to point out that, unfortunately, the Host Club is not made of money. The dress did cost nine-million yen…"

Rin glanced at Kyoya with a raised eyebrow. "So you want me to pay for it?"

Kyoya just smiled, and Rin narrowed her eyes.

"Typical," she muttered under her breath, probably not thinking that Kyoya could hear her.

"What's that?" he asked. Rinsuke smiled again and waved her hand in dismissal.

"Oh, nothing, nothing. So I assume you want this money right away?"

"Preferably. However, I don't think now would be the best time. How about you come to the Host Club today and drop if off then?"

Rinsuke eyed him suspiciously. "Why do I have to give it to you at the Club?"

"I highly doubt it would be appropriate for you to give me any form of money in front of our peers, and the Host Club is where I spend my afternoons. Of course, there are always other ways for you to pay off the debt…"

"No," Rinsuke said quickly. "I'll give you the check tomorrow after school. I don't happen to have my wallet on me right now."

Kyoya nodded. "Alright, then, I'll be waiting. Thank you very much for your cooperation, Rinsuke."

"Yes, of course, Ootori-san," she replied in a monotone.

Kyoya could just imagine the insults she was throwing at him in her head. She kept her irritation to herself, though, and Kyoya smiled before returning to his seat.

"What was that about?" Tamaki asked once Kyoya was seated.

"Just handling some Club matters."

Tamaki pouted. "But Mommy, what about me?"

Kyoya looked at him and said rather bluntly, "You are sitting next to me, and our schedule is the same throughout the whole day. I needed to speak to Rinsuke before she changes classes, which I do believe she does after lunch."

Tears welled in Tamaki's eyes, but before he could say anything else, Kyoya spoke again.

"Now, what was this idea you had for tomorrow's theme?"

Tamaki's demeanor suddenly changed as he remembered the idea he had yet to tell his friend. He leaned toward Kyoya, his hand in front of his face with his index finger shaped as though it were a hook. He said just one word:

"Pirates."

"…Pirates," Kyoya repeated incredulously.

Tamaki nodded and stood, making large arm movements as he spoke. Flowers and sparkles seemed to swirl about him as he trailed off into his fantasy.

"Just think of how the girls will fall at our feet as we bravely stand up for them with our swords. It will be forbidden love on the open seas, both beautiful and tragic. I, the Captain, will be dressed in a dashing red coat that would match my passionate feelings for each of the damsels that stumble across my humble crew."

When Tamaki was finished, Kyoya looked at him with a slight frown.

"It would take more than a day to prepare for that," he stated.

Tamaki placed his hands on Kyoya's desk and leaned forward so he was towering over his friend.

"But you are going to do it, right? Even if not tomorrow, we will become devilishly handsome for our ladies!"

Kyoya sighed, but made note of it in his notebook. "I will try to make it happen as soon as possible."

"Perfect!" Tamaki cheered enthusiastically, then once again sat down in his seat. "I knew you'd love the idea, Mommy."

Kyoya just adjusted his glasses as he thought about this new theme for the Club. He would have to up his fundraising considerably to get the money to pay for it, but it shouldn't be too much trouble. He'd already had to pull off quite a lot for Tamaki, after all.

-K-

When lunch came around, Kyoya left the class with Tamaki to go to the cafeteria. Rinsuke did not stay in the class as he thought she might. She did not go to the cafeteria either, however. Nor did she go in the direction of her next class of the day, which was some form of advanced mathematics. As Tamaki babbled on about his pirate idea and how cute Haruhi would look with a feathered hat and a parrot, Kyoya watched Rinsuke as she sped down the hall in the opposite direction. He had half a mind to follow her, but before he could he was summoned by another student.

Tamaki stopped his rambling and both he and Kyoya turned to the voice trying to get their attention. It was Mai, the first girl Kyoya had questioned about the apparent ninja outside Music Room #3. Immediately, Tamaki bowed low to plant a kiss on Mai's hand.

"Good day to you, Princess." He straightened and gently lifted her chin. "What can we do for you?"

A slight rosy color flowed onto Mai's cheeks and she seemed flustered as she answered.

"W-well, I actually wanted to tell Kyoya that I remembered something about the two boys he was asking about. I figured he would want to know."

Tamaki frowned and turned to his best friend.

"When was this?" he asked.

"Yesterday," Kyoya informed him evenly as he adjusted his glasses. "There were two boys snooping outside the Music Room after Miss Rinsuke dropped by."

Tamaki appeared to take the hint, for he eyed Kyoya and asked in a slightly darkened tone, "And you didn't tell me?"

"I did not see the need. They were gone when I checked and I have not found them since."

"Didn't see the need?" Tamaki asked, likely thinking about what those boys could have done to her after she left. "Kyoya, if those boys were there to-"

"Join the club," Kyoya said swiftly, remembering what he had told Mai yesterday. Tamaki stopped and looked utterly lost at the sudden topic shift.

Kyoya smiled and hoped Tamaki wouldn't try to argue any further. "I have heard some rumors that there are some boys who want to join the Host Club." He turned to Mai. "Now, what is it that you have remembered?"

Mai tore her gaze away from Tamaki, who still looked like a deer in headlights, and stuttered, "Oh, um, well… I knew I was forgetting something when you first asked me about the boys. I couldn't remember at all until this morning. I drove by a shop with a familiar symbol as its logo, and I realized that both of the boys had that same exact symbol tattooed on their arms."

Kyoya furrowed his brow in thought and asked, "What did the symbol look like?"

"Well, it was pretty simple," Mai said as she tried to remember exactly what it was. She traced her fingers in the air as she described it. "It was two triangles attached at the tip kind of like an hourglass, and then two half-circles surrounding it on opposite sides. The circle on the right was slightly bigger than the one on the left."

Of all the things Mai could have said, that was perhaps the one that Kyoya least expected. He had to work to keep the astonishment out of his expression. Though he had not knowingly met any of the members of the organization that particular symbol represented, he knew it well. The knowledge of the faction was less public than other groups like it, but more prominent members of society had to know about it. Otherwise, its members could very easily do most anything to ruin a person's life.

Kyoya recovered quickly and hid his surprise with a smile. "Thank you Miss Mai, you have been most helpful."

Mai paused, probably expecting a little bit more of a reaction than that. Kyoya bowed politely, and Mai muttered a quiet "You're welcome" before she ran off to where her friends were waiting for her. Kyoya heard them practically squealing as he turned on his heel and continued on toward the cafeteria. He would have searched for Rinsuke, but she had long since disappeared. He also needed some time to think about this new information, as it was a rather large curveball that he hadn't been expecting. It changed _a lot _of things. If the people after Rinsuke were the Kumo… or even worse, if she had caught the attention of the Jor ōgumo…

"Hey, Kyoya," Tamaki said as he kept pace with him. "What is the significance of what Mai said?"

Kyoya glanced at Tamaki and debated whether or not he should tell him. If he did, the whole Host Club would know before the day was out, and that could be more trouble than it was worth. If they knew who was following Rin, they would make a rather visible effort to protect her or figure out why, and they wouldn't be very subtle about it. With the exception of maybe Haruhi. Kyoya doubted that she even knew who the Kumo or Jorōgumo were. However, without a doubt, the others would probably confront Rin under Tamaki's orders. Tamaki wouldn't just sit and watch while one of their guests was being harassed by a secret organization. Because of that, Kyoya thought better than to say anything.

"I'm not sure," he lied. "It seems important, however I can't think of a reason why. I'll look into it, though, so no need to worry."

Tamaki believed him, or at least appeared to. He again launched into one of his pirate fantasies while Kyoya just tried to puzzle out Rin's possible involvement with the Kumo. In his mind he organized the basics of what he knew about her and the events surrounding her.

She had stumbled into the club after being chased by a group of at least three boys. She was bleeding, but it was a wound she had seemingly received earlier. Then there was the account of the two Kumo members outside of the music room. It seemed that those two were the ones chasing Rinsuke, however if that were the case then there were more than just the two of them. Where the others had disappeared to, Kyoya could not say.

Now, considering he knew virtually nothing about Rinsuke's father, it was possible that she was being targeted for something he did, or to be used as some sort of leverage. It was not uncommon for students at Ouran to be hassled for their family's wealth. And yet, if the Kumo's wanted Rin, she should already have been kidnapped or worse. The Kumo's were a very prestigious group: they would not have let her slip through their fingers so easily. There was also the distinct possibility that they were just watching Rinsuke for the purpose of discovering some secret she or her father kept.

But, this was all just speculation. There were still a lot of things in this picture that had not yet been revealed. He would need to do some more digging in order to figure anything out. Unfortunately, he did not see Rinsuke for the remainder of the day, so he couldn't do much of anything. He continued to search Ouran's archives and even looked for anything on the internet about her or her mother, but he couldn't find anything significant. In the end, he decided that he would need to use methods that were a little unconventional to learn what he needed to. And that was actually a stirring thought. It seemed that Rinsuke would provide even more of a challenge than he first assumed, and he hadn't had one of those for a while.

* * *

_A/N: Can I take a moment to point out that Kyoya and Rin have the same super-late-night habits? They went to sleep at pretty much the same time. I just thought that would be cute. Don't mind me~ XD Anywho, I got this chapter out a lot later than expected and for that I apologize. Life is a troll, that's all I can say. Well, that's about all aside from the usual. Thanks for reading, please leave a review, and I love you all. ;)_


	4. Two Fights and One Armageddon

Chapter 4

Two Fights and One Armageddon

Five boys. Each one of them was larger than her in some way, whether by height or body mass, and each one had fire burning in their eyes. Currently, they were surrounding her in a half-circle, and her back was against one of the walls outside an Academy building. She had no chance of running or winning in a fight; not with her wound. And unfortunately, she had told Youta and Kaito to stay off-campus that day until they had fallen out of suspicion. That meant no help from the men she hired to be her body guards; truly a great plan on her part.

_Wonderful job, Rin, _she thought as she eyed the boys around her. _You screwed yourself over for something as stupid as your stubborn pride._

Rin threw away her internal scolding and made eye contact with each of the boys in turn, daring them to make a move. None of them stepped forward, but they were cracking their knuckles in an effort to look menacing. It was a pretty pitiful, and didn't have the desired effect. Rin tried her best to not look as annoyed as she felt so they thought they were actually frightening her. Perhaps she could talk her way out of this one. She was about to instigate a conversation when the boy in front of her stepped forward and distinguished himself as the leader of the merry gang. It made sense, really: he was the only one with some level of competence.

"Fukumoto Rinsuke," he said darkly in greeting.

_Moto Akihiro. His father a successful businessman in the utility industry. His mother deceased._

"That is what you are going by nowadays, right?"

Rin just narrowed her eyes. _He's following in his father's footsteps and taking business-associated classes. Physical ability is average, but his arrogance is far above the normal level. Everyone by now knows how proud he is of being in Class B._

When Rin didn't respond, Akihiro smirked.

"I'll take that as a yes."

Rin didn't even twitch.

_The other four are Class C's, only known for being Akihiro's cronies. Inconsequential._

Akihiro was getting irritated at her silence, but for the time being he seemed to try his best not to show it.

"I'm so glad we have the chance to catch up," he continued. "You were in such a hurry yesterday; where did you run off to?"

_If I hit each of them quickly, I _might_ be able to finish it without reopening my wounds. At the first sign of rebellion, they'll probably just run. Then again, it might be wise not to aggravate them, considering their reason for chasing me. And unfortunately they aren't all physically incompetent._

Too late. Since Rin had been ignoring Akihiro, he lost control of the anger he was holding back. He took a step forward, pulled his fist back, and punched with all his might. Rin didn't drop her gaze, even as his fist came closer. She knew it was too late for her to dodge unless she wanted to start something, so it was better to just let it come. Then, his hand passed her, and made contact with the wall. She didn't let the relief she felt show on her face.

"You answer me when I'm talking to you," Akihiro hissed, his face only inches from hers. Rin let a small gap of silence persist before she spoke.

"I find small talk a waste of time," she replied. "Why don't you skip to the part I care about?"

Akihiro bared his teeth like a mad dog, and he trembled with what Rin thought at first to be rage, but soon realized it was laughter when he tipped his head back and howled with it. Rin raised an eyebrow in question as the other boys joined in, probably not really knowing what was so funny. She waited for them to quiet down.

Akihiro eventually wiped his eyes to rid himself of the tears that filled them from his apparent amusement, and then he spoke.

"You are so full of a guilty conscience over all of those people you killed that you want us to just begin your punishment right away? At least you can claim that you aren't a coward."

Rin's blank stare immediately turned into molten and she straightened to come closer to Akihiro's height.

"I was not the one who designed the product," she hissed. "You can blame me for whatever the hell you want, but do not fool yourself into believing that hurting me will bring justice to my father's actions. He didn't give a damn about your mother, and he sure as hell doesn't give a damn about me. So stop acting like a child and bring your anger down upon the man who deserves it."

She finished her statement by crossing her arms defiantly over her chest. _So much for getting out of this one with words, _she thought._ I royally threw that option out the window. But, I'd say that was well deserved on his part._

Akihiro seemed taken aback by her sudden burst of passion, but didn't let it fluster him for long. He, too, returned her glare and stood taller to intimidate her.

"You better watch your mouth," he growled under his breath so only she could hear. Rin smirked.

"On top of that being physically impossible, I don't think I quite have the desire to bother myself with such frivolities."

Akihiro's eyes widened in momentary shock before they narrowed in anger.

"Why you…"

He didn't even bother to finish with that statement, just reached forward and shoved Rin against the wall. She flinched as a sharp jolt of pain shot out from her wound, but otherwise did her best to keep her blank stare. She steeled herself for whatever was about to come, but before Akihiro could act…

"Rinsuke?"

Everyone, including Rin, was surprised at the sudden voice. Akihiro stepped back and turned around; the rest of the boys parted so they could see who interrupted them. It was Haruhi.

"Is there a problem?" Haruhi asked in his usual monotone. Rin immediately put on the friendly persona that Haruhi knew her by.

"Fujioka-san!" she cried happily. "I didn't think I'd see you today, how are you?"

Haruhi glanced at the boys suspiciously and answered with a simple, "Fine I guess. What about you?"

Rin smiled, easily discerning the hidden question in that. _'Are these boys the ones that were chasing you?'_

"I'm doing quite well, thanks," she replied; ignoring Haruhi's meaning entirely. "Akihiro and I were just discussing times to get together. He needs help with one of his classes, and I offered my services."

Akihiro's posse looked around at each other in utter confusion, but at least their leader had the sense to go with the excuse.

"Yeah," he said and looked back at Rin. "So does tomorrow after school sound good to you?"

Rinsuke hesitated and shook her head. "Not tomorrow. Maybe Thursday?"

Akihiro narrowed his eyes so only Rin could see, but he nodded. "Yeah, sounds good."

Rinsuke smiled. "Great, so I'll see you then."

With that, she stepped around him and latched onto Haruhi's arm.

"Walk me to my car, Fujioka-san," she said a little too cheerfully. Haruhi seemed just about as confused as the others, but didn't resist.

"Alright," he said, casting a quick glance over his shoulder at the other boys. Rinsuke wasn't sure what he saw, but it probably wasn't pleasant. She pulled him along so they were soon out of sight of Akihiro.

They walked arm-in-arm toward the front of the school, however before they reached the gate, Rin pulled Haruhi over to the side of the walkway where they wouldn't be heard.

"You have no idea what wonderful timing you have," she sighed with genuine relief. "Thanks for showing up when you did."

Haruhi nodded slowly. "You're welcome…"

He paused, and looked to the side, probably deciding whether or not he should ask about what was really going on. As he did this, something about his face caught Rin's attention. She studied him closely for a moment and her eyes widened in shock. Suddenly, it made sense.

As Rin had been talking to Haruhi yesterday she had noticed something off about him. Of course, she didn't think anything about it because she was distracted by the excruciating pain in her side, but now she saw it clearly. She was almost embarrassed that she hadn't noticed it sooner.

"Haruhi," she began slowly and smiled. "Would you mind me asking what you're doing as a host in a host club?"

Haruhi seemed startled by the question, but shrugged.

"It's nothing, really, I just accidentally broke some important artifact or whatever and I started working with them to pay my debt off."

Rin raised an eyebrow inquisitively and asked, "And they let you do this despite the fact that you're a girl?"

Haruhi paused, even more startled than before, but she gave a slight laugh.

"So you figured it out. I guess you caught me."

Rin smiled. "It's fine, really, I was just curious." She paused for a moment. "I didn't think girls were allowed to wear male's uniforms."

Haruhi shrugged again. "I've never gotten any trouble from the teachers."

A conspiratorial spark lit in Rin's eyes. "Thank you, Haruhi," she said. "I believe I have some business with the Chairman to clear up." She bowed. "It was good to see you."

"Uh, you too," Haruhi agreed and mirrored the bow, even more confused than before. Rin could tell the host was still troubled by what she had just witnessed, but she wasn't about to answer any questions about it. Before she turned to go to Yuzuru's office, she realized she couldn't just get the uniform without _some _form of warning to Ootori; that would just be rude.

"Haruhi, would you mind if I ask a favor of you?"

"Hm?" Haruhi had turned to leave but faced Rin once again at her call. "What is it?"

A smile almost as malicious as Kyoya's crossed Rin's features, and Haruhi's eyes widened a bit as she wondered where that had come from. Rin had always seemed so cheerful…

"Tell Ootori-san he'll get his uniform back tomorrow instead of what we earlier discussed."

Haruhi's apprehension turned again into confusion.

"He'll understand when you tell him," Rin assured, her bubbly attitude back in place, and her smile now a friendly one.

"Alright," Haruhi nodded. "I'll tell him."

"Arigato!" Rin said with a wave and then spun on her heel. She walked swiftly to the Chairman's office, excited about finally getting rid of that stupid dress. It was getting annoying having to change when she arrived at the Academy and then again before she left. Granted, she could take her car instead of her bike, but that went against every fiber of her being. If she wore a boy's uniform, she wouldn't have to deal with changing at the most inconvenient times of the day. And besides, the dresses were both hideous and uncomfortable. She'd take a pair of slacks over those any day.

She didn't run into any students that she knew, and therefore had no interruptions as she moved through the nearly empty hallways of Ouran. She reached the Chairman's office in a fairly decent amount of time, but before she knocked she took a deep breath. He was always so impossible to deal with; it was obvious where Tamaki got his supposed "charm." She needed to clear her mind a bit before she tried to confront him.

Just as she was about to reach up and knock, the door opened of its own accord and Rin found herself looking into a pair of eyes that glinted like cold topaz in the setting sun. She froze in shock, held speechless for a long moment with the jolt of seeing eyes that mirrored her own staring back at her. The spell was broken as soon as the man in front of her smiled. The gesture did not seem to spread across his face.

"Hello, Rinsuke," he said with what she swore was disdain.

She dropped her hand to her side and clenched her fists.

_What the hell is he doing here?_

She did her best to force her negative thoughts out of her mind and smile.

"Father," she nodded curtly. "I didn't expect to see you here."

Before he could answer, the door widened as Yuzuru stepped out to see why his guest had paused in the doorway.

"Oh, Rinsuke," he said when he noticed her, "I had not been informed of your visit, what a lovely surprise. What can I do for you?"

Rin smiled sweetly, glad that the Chairman was there so she didn't have to keep speaking with Ryuunosuke. "I merely have some things I'd like to discuss with you. Nothing too major."

"Of course," Yuzuru said, "would you like your father to be present?"

"No," Rinsuke said quickly, but caught herself by widening her smile. "It is unnecessary. I know he is a busy man and really the matters I am preoccupied with are quite trivial. I wouldn't want to waste your time," she directed the last part toward Ryuunosuke, whose near-black hair was casting a shadow over his eyes.

He stared down at her with disapproval and irritation at her slip-up, but knew the matter could not be attended to in the current situation. So, he turned to Yuzuru with a smile and held out his hand; Yuzuru grasped it firmly.

"It was good to see you, my friend. I hope everything turns in your favor."

Yuzuru returned his smile. "I am certain it will, and I wish the same for you."

Rin tried not to roll her eyes at the dramatic farewell, and she completely avoided looking at Ryuunosuke as he passed her and left the school grounds. She waited until she was sure he couldn't overhear them before she looked up at Yuzuru. However, it was the Chairman who spoke first. He stepped aside and held his hand toward the interior of the office.

"Please, come in."

Rinsuke sniffed and stalked into the room stiffly. Anyone who called Ryuunosuke _friend _was no acquaintance of hers. She'd rather get through with this quickly, but she knew that was unlikely. So, she sat down on one of the lush couches, but did not lean back comfortably. She sat upright with her hands folded in her lap and waited for Yuzuru to be seated as well. He sank back into the cushion and crossed his legs, one hand holding a glass of wine that came from absolutely nowhere, and the other resting along the back of the couch.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked with the same sickeningly sweet smile as Tamaki before he held his glass to his lips.

"I've come to inform you that I need a new uniform," Rin stated bluntly. The Chairman nearly spewed his wine over the room. He nonchalantly coughed a few times after he swallowed and then looked at her with another smile.

"Rinsuke, darling, you know I love it when beautiful maidens such as yourself come to visit me, but I do believe I am a bit higher on the totem pole than that request."

"You're the Chairman, I wanted to be sure my request is clear."

Yuzuru leaned back and raised his brow inquisitively. "So then you do not trust my staff to get the job done?"

"I don't trust anyone, I thought I'd already informed you of that."

Yuzuru just looked at her inquisitively, and Rin sighed.

"Please just get me a new uniform, preferably by tomorrow."

Yuzuru's eyes traveled the length of her body and she felt the need to shrink away even though she knew nothing would come of his… eccentricities. She was quite glad that these dresses covered so much of her body, otherwise she'd have an overwhelming need to punch the Chairman. Every time she saw him.

"Your uniform does not seem to be in bad shape," he said, confirming her suspicions that he wasn't being as lecherous as he had seemed. "Might I ask why you are requesting a new one?"

Rinsuke took a deep breath, well aware of what his reaction would probably be to her next statement.

"It is uncomfortable, and unsuitable to my mode of transportation. I require a male's uniform."

Yuzuru practically shattered with that – quite literally. He remained still for a long moment before he launched into one of his rants, uncrossing his legs and pulling out a rose in his free hand.

"Oh, my poor darling, how saddened I am by that request! To hide your feminine beauty behind the thick folds of men's fabric – I simply cannot allow it! One as fair as yourself cannot-"

"You let Haruhi wear one," Rin interrupted coolly. "This isn't so much of a request as a demand. I'll just make another male student buy one for me if you don't do it yourself."

Yuzuru stopped sparkling and pouted slightly. "I have no idea where you get that from, you know it's rather rude to interrupt someone when they're speaking."

Rinsuke gave him a look that said, _does it look like I care?_

"Alright," Yuzuru resigned and lifted the rose to his nose thoughtfully. "I'll have the uniform here for you in the morning before the day begins."

Rinsuke nodded her thanks and said, "I expect you'll put the cost on Ryuunosuke's tab along with everything else."

"Of course."

Rinsuke lifted her chin slightly. "Then, unless you have anything else to discuss with me Chairman, I will be going now."

Yuzuru regarded her with careful eyes. At first, she thought that perhaps he did indeed have something on his mind, but then his serious frown cracked into an overly-joyous smile.

"There is nothing at the moment I can think of, darling, except for one thing. You know I don't like you to call me by my title, it's so impersonal. Please just think of me as your Uncle."

Rin narrowed her eyes, easily catching the way he avoided what was on his mind. She sighed and stood from her seat.

"I'll be calling you that as soon as you can prove to me that computational fluid dynamics simulation is a waste of time."

Yuzuru looked as though he had no idea what she was talking about, which was rather the point. Rinsuke smirked.

"That is what I thought. Now, _Chairman, _it was good to see you. I'm glad I was able to catch you while you had time, and I do look forward to our next meeting." She walked to the door, but before she opened it she said, "I don't suppose that if I asked you, you'd tell me what Ryuunosuke was doing here, would you?"

Yuzuru's seriousness returned. If he noticed the way she called her father by his first name, he didn't say anything of it. "That, my dear, is something you'll have to take up with him yourself."

Rin didn't bother to answer. She wasn't in the least surprised. Instead, she curtseyed and managed a polite farewell before she left the Chairman to his own devices. She walked quickly down the halls toward the dressing rooms, angry thoughts swirling around in her head.

What had Ryuunosuke been doing talking to her principle behind her back? Any business he had in her school surely he should take to her first. If he proposed something that would affect her in any way and she heard about it, she suspected it would be fairly difficult to tell him apart from a still-smoldering forest fire. Of course, she'd be the first suspect because for some undeterminable reason he had already left all his funds to her should something happen to him. She'd just use the money to buy off the jury or whatever. That's what Ryuunosuke did, anyway. Dirty money bought dirty deeds.

Rinsuke shook her head with irritation. Thinking about it wouldn't help, especially not at the current moment. She could feel her anger rising every moment she said his name in her head. So, she thought of more pressing matters, such as the need to buy parts. She had taken a mental list of all the parts she needed, and already guessed that she wouldn't be able to buy all of them. Instead, she would just buy the most important, and save the others for a later time. Perhaps she could take them from another one of her bikes, although she didn't particularly enjoy that option. She could also salvage them from a junkyard, if the need should arise. But, no matter how desperate she was, Ryuunosuke's money would remain untouched outside of school necessities. She didn't need him or his millions. Or billions. Whatever; she didn't care enough to keep track.

She dressed as quickly as she could into her usual T-shirt and jeans and hung her uniform dress in the locker where it belonged. Of course, soon it would be back in the hands of the boys who gave it to her in the first place. A small smirk formed on her face, one that she tried her best to keep down. She hadn't had much interaction with Kyoya until recently, but she knew very well how much of a prodigy everyone thought he was. She was very happy to tear someone a peg down, even if it was only a simple refusal to follow through with the terms they had agreed on.

Rinsuke shut her locker and left Ouran promptly. She didn't see Akihiro or anyone else for that matter, so she was off-campus in no time at all. Her trip to buy parts didn't last long, and unfortunately wasn't as fruitful as she would have liked. It seemed that prices had raised recently, so she was only able to buy about seventy-five percent of the items she thought she would, and she had already anticipated not being able to buy them all. It was disappointing, but a setback she'd be able to handle easily. Over the weekend when she took a break from practice she would go out to a junkyard and see if she could find anything useful. If that failed, she had an old bike she probably wasn't going to use much in the future.

By the time she returned home it was nearly dinner, although she hadn't sat down with her father at the appointed time since… she didn't even remember when. He had given up trying to get her to do so a long time ago. For some reason, though, as she neared her garage, she had a feeling tonight would be a little different. That reason, specifically, was the fact that Ryuunosuke seemed to be conversing with Youta and Kaito in the garage. She would have turned right back around if her father hadn't looked up and waved at her. She figured she had already done enough to incur his wrath and she might as well _try _not to get on his nerves.

She pulled up to the garage with much less of a flourish than she had the previous day, mostly because Ryuunosuke was easily annoyed by "flamboyant displays of useless skill." He'd said that to her once when she won her first gold medal and had proudly worn it home. It had taken a great deal of effort for her not to punch him even at that young age, but she quickly learned not to show off in front of him in any way, shape, or form.

As soon as she removed her helmet she wished that she had decided to sleep at the school, or stay there until midnight, whichever worked the best to keep her out of his presence. Youta and Kaito disappeared when Ryuunosuke motioned for them to do so, leaving him and his daughter alone. Rinsuke smiled as she got off of the bike.

"Hello father," she said as politely as she could manage.

Ryuunosuke stared her down with hard eyes and folded his arms across his chest. "If only you could act so well around others and at least give the illusion of respect."

_Respect is earned,_ she thought icily. _And whatever you were talking to Yuzuru about was probably a stab in the back anyway._

"I have nothing but the utmost respect for you," she lied expertly, but her father knew her too well to fall for that.

"Do _not _speak to me like I am the child," he snapped. Rin barely refrained from rolling her eyes and walked around him to get to her tools, bringing along the bag of new parts she had bought.

"I don't believe I was," she said. Her father followed her to the tool box.

"Your attitude is helping no one in this situation, and making me look a fool."

_Perhaps that's because you are one, _she growled to herself. He often did seem like one to her.

"What you did today must never happen again," her father continued darkly. "I grow tired of your continuous rebellions and blatant disregard for who I am."

_And who are you? My father? If you were my father you would have showed up before it looked like I'd make you a pretty penny._

Rinsuke set down the tools she had picked up and looked at him blankly. "I haven't done anything to hurt your reputation, if that's what you're worried about. I assure you that you've done well enough on your own."

She probably could have held back that last bit. She really should have. But lately, she found she didn't exactly want to. Why should she treat him as her father when he so clearly wasn't?

And apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. Ryuunosuke grabbed onto her shoulder and spun her so she was facing him fully. His grip was like iron, and he didn't let go.

"Watch your tongue," he snapped, reminding her very much of how Akihiro had acted earlier that day.

Rin gritted her teeth to hold back another scathing remark and simply looked away. Whatever words she thought she wanted to say to him would only turn back to bite her eventually. She had to keep telling herself that. Ryuunosuke dropped his hand to his side, but did not back away.

"If you are done, I'd very much like to get to the real reason of my wanting to speak with you."

Rin chanced glancing back at him with surprise. She had thought he just wanted to regain some of his broken pride by scolding her – what more could he possibly have to say? Perhaps it had something to do with his conversation with Yuzuru…

"Why did you order your hound dogs to stay here today?" he asked.

Rin's surprise melted into irritation. They weren't _hound dogs _they were _people._ She turned back to her tools and sifted through the ones she didn't need. She considered telling a lie, but then remembered her father had spoken with the two in question already. They probably told him the truth, so she couldn't make anything up without further angering her father.

"I told Youta and Kaito to stay here because they let themselves be seen by students at Ouran who started to ask questions about them. It would not be wise for them to be on campus until they are no longer held in suspicion."

Ryuunosuke crossed his arms. "And why would anyone be asking questions about them?"

"Have you seen what they're wearing?" she remarked sarcastically.

Rin grabbed hold of a few different-sized wrenches and turned to where her bike was sitting. Ryuunosuke just looked at her and waited for a serious answer. She sighed.

"Because I was chased by a group of boys and had to hide in a room occupied by a club. Said club's members thought Youta and Kaito were the ones who had chased me."

Her father contemplated this for a moment, his eyes narrowing in anger.

"You were being chased," he stated. "By whom?"

Rin shrugged as she knelt down and started tinkering with the bike. "Spoiled rich kids. I don't know every single student that goes there, you know."

Her father didn't seem to believe her. He repeated more firmly, "Who were they?"

"Why do you care?" Rin snapped suddenly, her control pushed past the point of breaking. She hated when he started interfering in her affairs – she could handle herself. This was a problem that had lasted a long time. Ryuunosuke always wanted to dig himself into her problems so he could help her but he either made it worse or did nothing at all to alleviate the situation. If he did help in any way, it was certainly not welcome. Still, he seemed adamant in meddling in her own concerns.

"I am your father, Rin," Ryuunosuke hissed. "And it is my duty to protect-"

"Is that what it is? Your _duty_?" Rinsuke dropped her tools, balled her hands into fists, and her father was stunned into momentary silence. She stood to look at him on even ground and continued before he regained his wits enough to speak. "Is that what I am to you? Just something you have to take care of because of a _mistake _in your past? Am I just another broken engine to be fixed?"

Her father made a quick recovery and straightened so that he towered over her. "Rinsuke, you are deviating from the point at hand-"

"I don't give a damn if I'm deviating from anything," she interrupted, furious. He was the one avoiding the consequences of what he was doing, and their earlier conversation really had no point to it anyway. "It's obvious you don't think of me as your child, so why even bother? Wouldn't it be easier for you to just wash your hands of me and be done with it?"

By then her father was practically fuming. He took a step forward. "Hoshino Rinsuke-!"

"Don't you 'Hoshino Rinsuke' me, damn it!" she shouted at him for the first time in years. "My name is _Fukumoto." _She paused a split second before she continued, "I never asked for a father, you know. I never needed one. I got along just fine without one!"

"Yes, well you have one, don't you?" Ryuunosuke raised his voice, eyes now swirling with anger. He stepped forward again to close the distance between him and his daughter. "I'm not asking you to like me, Rinsuke, but you will not treat me as one of your rivals in competition. Your tantrums degrade you."

"Tantrums?" Rinsuke asked with disbelief, ready to fling in his face all of the things he put her through, but he interrupted.

"Yes, tantrums, Rinsuke. You childishly act out every time I come across you."

"And why the hell do you suppose that is?"

"Because you are a child, Rinsuke!"

Rin flinched and looked away. A child, yes. That was all he ever saw her as. If she wasn't a problem he created, then she was just a naïve little girl who couldn't do anything on her own.

Perhaps it was true. Perhaps she did act out selfishly, and perhaps she was more similar to the "spoiled rich kids" of Ouran than she thought. How was she supposed to learn when her father never paid any attention to her, and her mother was always out of the country? She had to raise herself; her managers never helped her do anything. Perhaps having a family just wasn't right for her. Perhaps living on her own was the better option.

"Youta and Kaito are under my contract," Rin said blankly, and turned to exit the garage. "They act on my orders, not yours. Close the garage when you leave."

She thought she heard her father say something. Perhaps he tried to get her to stop, perhaps he tried to follow her. She ignored him either way and walked over to her Yamaha. She put her helmet on, revved the engine, and spun "flamboyantly" out of the driveway. As soon as she was off of her father's property she pushed the bike to its top speeds, unheeding of the cars around her.

She blew through red lights, weaved in and out of traffic, and kept on going without any cop interference. She knew how to avoid them. She drove recklessly, ignoring any street signs or visual markers that might tell her where she was. She just drove. It was her bike and the road, and the limit as far as the horizon.

She didn't know how long she circled aimlessly around the city, but she had slowed down to a reasonable pace at some point. She thought at first it was because some sensible side of her brain took over and told her to slow down, but she soon realized it was another matter entirely. Her bike continued to slow even as she tried to accelerate, and with sudden worry she looked at the fuel gauge: empty.

The bike just kept slowing down, and as Rin glanced around her she realized that there weren't any stores or gas stations around. She was in some part of the city that looked new and spread-out and… and she was in a very, _very _rich neighborhood. That meant that if she wanted help, she would probably owe some insanely large amount of money or perhaps her first-born son. As she pulled over to the side of the road she cursed profusely and put down the bike stand. She pulled her helmet off and tried to distinguish anything that might tell her _which _rich neighborhood she was in. She couldn't see anything.

With an irritated sigh, Rin got off of her bike and stored her helmet under her seat. Then, she kicked up the bike stand and started rolling her bike to the nearest mansion. There was a black iron gate in front of the driveway with two stone pillars on either side, not really a surprise, and the mansion beyond that was fairly modern as opposed to her father's estate's traditional layout. She looked at the numbers on the side of one of the pillars and for some reason the arrangement seemed familiar, but she pushed the thought away.

All she needed was a gallon of gas and she would make it to the nearest gas station… wherever that was. She would also probably need some directions… and a map. Thinking back now, Rin realized that this neighborhood was like a maze and she probably had no chance of leaving it on her own. She sighed again and mentally punched herself as she reached out to hit a button on the pillar, below the numbers. The button had a speaker next to it that came to life a few moments after she buzzed.

"_State your name, please_," a voice cracked out unevenly.

Rin rubbed the back of her neck half-heartedly, hoping whoever lived here wasn't some self-loving prick.

"Um, I'm just a little lost," she said uncertainly, holding down the button. She wanted to avoid giving her name if at all possible. "I was driving through the neighborhood when my bike ran out of gas and… and do you have a map or anything that I could use?"

She released the button and the voice replied almost immediately, "_Your name, please."_

Rin sighed and debated if it was worth it to just move on to the next house. Then she realized that the next house was very far away, and would probably ask for the same thing anyway. She held down the button again and decided to give her mother's name.

"Fukumoto," she said simply. She let go of the button and waited.

"_One moment, please."_

There was a long pause in which Rin glanced around nervously. She had no way to contact anyone since she had left her phone in the garage, and the sun was already below the horizon. That meant she was stuck here in the hand of some rich person she didn't know… What if it was someone who knew her father? And what if they were among the ones who held a grudge against him? She supposed she probably would not see the light of day ever again… which, in hindsight, might not have been a bad thing.

Just as she was about to give up and move on to the next house, the voice spoke again.

"_Welcome, Miss Fukumoto. Please come in, and bring your bike with you."_

Rin blinked in surprise, but also a bit of fear flared up in her stomach. If she walked into that gate no one would be able to help her should anything happen. Kaito and Youta probably had no idea where she was. Would she be just another story on the news?

She had to make her decision quickly, because the doors to the gate began to slide open slowly. Rin cast a nervous glance over her shoulder, but she couldn't see a thing.

_Walking into a strange home in the dead of night, no gas in my vehicle, no phone, and no one around to hear if I scream? Horror movie material; definitely horror movie material._

Still, what choice did she have? It was that or walk all the way home with a very big chance of getting mugged and/or raped. She'd take her chances in a home where she could at least find a kitchen knife to defend herself with.

So, without further ado, she pushed her bike forward and entered the grounds of her highly-likely doom. She walked up the long driveway, glancing at the dark bushes that line either side. As far as she could tell there were no assassins waiting for her to let her guard down, but still she didn't relax. It took a bit of effort for her to reach the top of the sloped driveway. The front door opened before she reached the front step. Inside the frame was a man, the butler she assumed. The light coming from inside the house cast a shadow over him so she couldn't see his features or really anything aside from his silhouette. He directed her to simply park the bike in front. She did so and then climbed the steps to the front door.

The butler stepped aside and motioned for her to proceed him, which she obliged to do. As her eyes adjusted to the bright light she tried her best not to stare at the large foyer or the modern art placed handsomely around the receiving room. The part of her that told her to turn and run seemed to go away as she followed the butler through the house. It was really a gorgeous layout, and Rin was reminded that this could be hers. _This was her life. _Even now, years after she met her father, she had a hard time believing it. Perhaps that was one of the reasons she didn't want her father's money; she simply wouldn't know what to do with it.

Since the butler was in front of her and couldn't see her, Rin chanced glancing around her in awe. She was used to the elegant, older design of her father's home, but something this new was very different. It was like every movie she could think of in which one of the main characters had loads of money. Sometimes the houses on TV seemed so surreal, but this house was exactly like those, right down to the plants and various trinkets scattered around for decoration. It was strange to think that there really were people that rich in this world.

The butler led her quietly to what she assumed was a living room. The couches were white and the tables were black with glass tops. The television was huge, and of course it was a flat screen. Rinsuke almost didn't want to believe such a spacious place existed, and that wasn't to mention how high-tech everything seemed to be. However, her amazement was cut quite short as the little part in her brain that told her to run away started shouting at her to _run the hell away_.

The trigger for this reaction was none other than the apparent master of the house who was sitting with his legs crossed on one of the couches facing the hallway she had just come from. Her eyes widened as said person smiled at her venomously. She immediately realized that this wasn't a horror movie. No, it was worse than that, it was a living nightmare. Or possibly Armageddon.

The boy in front of her stood and bowed in greeting, his concrete eyes looking sharply at her through his glasses.

"It is a pleasure to have you," he straightened and his kind smile melted into a smirk. "Miss Rinsuke."

* * *

_A/N: Dun dun DUUUUNNNN. Rin is officially screwed, but we knew that from the beginning, didn't we? Well, I am ashamed to say that this chapter came out way later than I intended, which is definitely the fault of Life. Also school. BUT I GRADUATE IN LIKE A WEEK SO YAY! As soon as summer hits, it will be me and my beloved computer. All day every day. Unless I'm working. But you guys probably don't care about that so I'm moving on to more important things like: I have no idea how I did with Yuzuru's character. I tried to make him a little flamboyant but also serious, and I feel like I didn't do it even a little bit of justice. So if you have any suggestions for that, I would love you forever. Also feel free to comment, ask questions, or draw me a bear in the review box. Anything is good. And thank you all for reading!_

_-KC_


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